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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28645614">cherry blossom fairy</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/mossring/pseuds/mossring'>mossring</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Anime), Pocket Monsters: Sword &amp; Shield | Pokemon Sword &amp; Shield Versions</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>A lot of pink, Beet | Bede Needs a Hug, Beet | Bede-centric, Character Development, Character Study, Fairy Tale Elements, Fairy Tale Retellings, Gen, Grandparent Poplar | Opal, Koharu | Chloe-centric, Not Canon Compliant, Personal Growth, Pokemon Evolution, Pokemon Training, Tea, Theatre</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 13:08:39</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>22,832</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28645614</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/mossring/pseuds/mossring</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Opal catches sight of a very pink Koharu, and drags her off to fairy boot camp. </p><p>Her new protégé is <i>not</i> happy about this. </p><p>(It all goes downhill from there.)</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Beet | Bede &amp; Poplar | Opal, Beet | Bede/Yuuri | Gloria, Gou | Goh &amp; Koharu | Chloe, Gou | Goh &amp; Koharu | Chloe &amp; Satoshi | Ash Ketchum, Gou | Goh/Satoshi | Ash Ketchum, Koharu | Chloe &amp; Beet | Bede, Koharu | Chloe &amp; Poplar | Opal</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>41</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Act One</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Koharu is very pink. I don't know if you have noticed, but she is very pink. So what if Opal saw her? What if Bede was there too? What if Koharu and Bede were rivals?<br/>I first thought of this idea in November but I've been too coward to write it but once Opal was revealed to be appearing in the anime soon, I just knew I had to get the fic out.<br/><br/>This is set in the anime universe, so the timeline of events is quite different.<br/>Initially I intended it to be a one-shot, but it soon got out of hand. (26k words and counting!) And I'll be busy with school, so I decided to divide it into chapters and publish as much as possible on AO3 before I go back to hell.<br/>Enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Act One</strong>
</p>
<p><strong>The Road Not Taken </strong><br/><em>By Robert Frost</em><br/><br/>Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,<br/>And sorry I could not travel both<br/>And be one traveler, long I stood<br/>And looked down one as far as I could<br/>To where it bent in the undergrowth;</p>
<p>Then took the other, as just as fair,<br/>And having perhaps the better claim,<br/>Because it was grassy and wanted wear;<br/>Though as for that the passing there<br/>Had worn them really about the same,</p>
<p>And both that morning equally lay<br/>In leaves no step had trodden black.<br/>Oh, I kept the first for another day!<br/>Yet knowing how way leads on to way,<br/>I doubted if I should ever come back.</p>
<p>I shall be telling this with a sigh<br/>Somewhere ages and ages hence:<br/>Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—<br/>I took the one less traveled by,<br/>And that has made all the difference.</p>
<hr/>
<p>It became a habit.</p>
<p>After the whole incident with Cara Liss and the combining of Galar fossils—in which they created a hulking but strangely impressive monstrosity that Ash fawned over—Koharu found herself joining the two research fellows in more and more adventures. </p>
<p>One time it was the Rock Tunnel in Lavender Town, watching the flash of silver steel as blades clashed with leek in a musty underground dungeon, and another time it was Alola, scouring the blond-haired Diglett and Dugtrio at the base of Wela Volcano, all the while trying to ignore the three overenthusiastic hikers.</p>
<p>Yes, it became a fast habit, joining Ash and Goh. She was still sort of the sore thumb, the third wheel, the obvious amateur who got confused and gawk-eyed at everything and left in the dust too many a time, but she was one of them, all right. </p>
<p>Ash and Goh got used to her presence on their trips, often shifting a little to the side to give some space for her to sit next to them on the many trains or buses or planes they rode whilst travelling, accommodating her as easily as they invited her to different contests or research projects. </p>
<p>She wouldn’t have gone along so often if not for her new partner. </p>
<p>In a way, Eevee resembled the hikers at Wela Volcano—just as the hikers loved to throw themselves into the photographs Goh and Koharu took with their Rotom phones, there was nothing Eevee adored more than throwing herself into adventures—and too often, danger. There was never a calm moment with the Evolution Pokémon who wouldn’t even evolve. </p>
<p>But then again, Koharu thought, maybe this enthusiasm was a good thing. It could help Eevee evolve, having her gain experience from all these journeys. </p>
<p>And then, maybe, <em> Koharu </em> would evolve, too.  </p>
<p>So that’s exactly what she did—she threw herself into adventure, taking off-days from school more and more regularly to travel to different places and learn more about different Pokémon. </p>
<p>She studied Eevee’s behaviour, emotional state, movements, eating habits—everything under the sun. Chrysa guided her in the making of scientific observations, teaching her how to spot different signs and attribute them to sound conclusions. If Eevee’s tongue is pale and scattered with little red dots, it means she’s not getting the desired amount and quality of sleep. If it’s red, she’s on the brink of dehydration. And so on and so forth. </p>
<p>Koharu hadn’t known she could tell so much from a single unassuming observation, and she dove into researching eagerly, wanting to learn as much as she could. Because that was what Eevee deserved, and nothing less.</p>
<p>She ventured to study Pokémon Fossils, too—ever since her trip to the Pewter City’s Museum of Science, she had become completely intrigued by them. And the experience at Galar only served to solidify her ever-growing interest, her passion blooming like cherry blossom trees in spring.</p>
<p>This time, she was back in Galar again.</p>
<p>After Ash’s nail-biting Gym match with his long-time rival, Bea, Stow-on-Side was magical in the late evening, bathed in the golden light of the setting sun. Triumph painted the sloping, sculpted walls of the mini-canyons a dusty mixture of rose and tequila, and victory illuminated every single little dust particle suspended in the air, making them dance with a newfound vigour. </p>
<p>As the automatic doors slid open to let them out of the Gym, Koharu turned her eyes to the Stow-on-Side mural to the side of the building, admiring the way the light made the old bronze statues bloom with a brilliant golden-orange glow.</p>
<p>Zacian and Zamazenta stared back at her, and Koharu wondered what they looked like in the flesh. Ash and Goh had recounted to her passionately about the Darkest Day when they’d battled alongside the two Legendary Pokémon of the Galar region, but at that time, she’d merely hummed non-committedly and brushed them off in her usual fashion. </p>
<p>To her dismay, she realised she kind of regretted that now.</p>
<p>“Yes! I knew you could do it! Congratulations, Ash!” Goh chittered next to her, his whole body vibrating with excitement as he did a fist pump. </p>
<p>Ash grinned back at him, and the two of them threw themselves into a full-fledged high-five. Instinctively, Koharu rolled her eyes, but a small smile tugged at the corner of her lips as she pulled Eevee closer to her chest and offered her congratulations as well.</p>
<p>Ash checked his World Coronation ranking on his phone, the numbers flickering down satisfyingly like dominoes. “Ultra Class, here I come!” Then he smiled down at the glittering badge in his hand, before holding it up to the light for them to admire. “It’s nice of Bea to give me a Gym Badge even though this was sort of an unofficial match.”</p>
<p>Koharu blinked. “I thought it was official. The Rotom Drone was there and all, and your rankings were updated.” </p>
<p>Ash shook his head and explained that even though it <em> was </em> an official match in terms of the Pokémon World Coronation Series, but when it came to the Galar Gym Challenge, it was apparently a different story: to even participate in the Gym Challenge, you had to be personally endorsed by someone important, and you had to follow a certain order when challenging the Gyms and acquiring the Badges. </p>
<p>Bea’s Gym was the fourth in line. So no matter how you looked at it, this match didn’t count as official in the eyes of the Galar League, and Ash’s Fighting Badge would be rendered invalid.</p>
<p>“Invalid,” repeated Koharu, rolling the word on her tongue. It had a sour taste to it. It just didn’t seem fair, and Goh voiced his agreement vehemently. </p>
<p>Ash simply smiled, dismissing it with a shrug of his shoulder. He only reserved his anger at truly unjust things, like when Team Rocket stole Pokémon as part of their daily routine and happened to include them in their plans.</p>
<p>“It doesn’t really matter,” he said. “I understand why. I’m not even participating in the League this time. And I <em> always </em> participate in any League I come across.”</p>
<p>That piqued Goh’s interest. Koharu couldn’t blame him, though. It was rare for Ash to talk about anything from his past travels. He only let slip the tiniest morsels of information when the situation reminded him of it, and even then, he usually didn’t say anything.</p>
<p>“Oh, really? So you participated in the Alola League too, then?”</p>
<p>Ash nodded. “Sure did. And many others.”</p>
<p>Goh perked up. “Oh, tell me, tell me! What about Kanto?”</p>
<p>Kohau let their conversation bleed out of her ears as they made their way to the Pokémon Centre, a quaint building tucked away in a corner of the similarly small and quiet town, right next to Route 6, close to where they’d previously conducted their research on Galar Fossils. Ash’s Pokémon were dead beat from that fierce battle with Bea, who had spared no mercy in exhausting him. But they had come up on top.</p>
<p>They were a few paces away from the pink-framed double doors of the Center when a raspy, disembodied voice stopped them in their tracks.</p>
<p>“Now <em> that’s </em> what I would call pink!”</p>
<p>Ash and Goh exchanged a look, while Koharu spun around to find the source of the voice—and found herself facing an old lady. Hunched over her umbrella, she looked like a walking candy-cane from afar. </p>
<p>Koharu squinted, making out sharp blue eyes under her teal hat that cut her to the bone when their gazes locked. </p>
<p>Aside from the royal purple fur shawl and a cloud of the same shade around her umbrella, she was decidedly… pink.</p>
<p>“Uh…” muttered Koharu. <em> No, </em> you’re <em> what I would call pink. </em> But what was this old lady even talking about? Herself? What <em> was </em> pink? </p>
<p>Then she looked down at herself.</p>
<p>
  <em> Oh. </em>
</p>
<p>“So sincere and straightforward,” breathed the old lady, her hands fixed atop her cane to support her weight as she stood a good three metres away from them, a strange sight in the dusty and drab landscape of Stow-on-Side, “and yet so lost and disoriented.”</p>
<p>“Oh, we’re not lost,” said Ash, bounding up to the lady, hands ready to support her. “But <em> you </em> seem kinda lost. How can we help you?”</p>
<p>Koharu didn’t think this old lady needed any help, despite her appearance. Eevee jumped out of Koharu’s arms to land on the ground, growling at the stranger.</p>
<p>The old lady’s lips curved up like knives, and Koharu took a step back, nearly bumping into Goh. “I like it!” she continued, not seeming to mind Ash at all. “That’s the sort of thing that gives people some depth!”</p>
<p>Her eyes locked onto Koharu, and she froze as a maniac smile crawled its way up the old lady’s face. </p>
<p>“Time for my Gym mission, child!” she crowed, flinging aside her cane and knocking poor Ash to the ground, before she <em> lunged </em> forward—right towards Koharu. </p>
<p>A half-scream tore its way up her throat, but she couldn’t move for some reason—it was as if she was rooted to the ground. And before Koharu knew it, the old lady’s hands were cupping the sides of her face as if she were her long-lost granddaughter. </p>
<p>Behind her, Goh let out a half-strangled noise.</p>
<p>“Pink!” the old lady exclaimed delightedly. Koharu was too shocked to move. Maybe it was the old lady perfume that lingered on her skin, which somehow smelled… <em> pink. </em> Maybe the perfume was paralysing her. </p>
<p>She gulped, and suddenly the old lady had teleported to her right, holding up her arm as if to sniff it. She ignored the protesting Eevee at her feet as she repeated, “Pink!”</p>
<p>Right. She was… pink.</p>
<p>She yelped as the old lady lifted her skirt slightly, feeling the fabric in her hands and nodding in approval. “And pink!” she declared with a final flourish. </p>
<p>Koharu bit back her scream when a hand gripped her shoulder. She felt the old lady chuckle from behind her and announce, “Congratulations, child!”</p>
<p>Koharu felt ready to die.</p>
<p>“Stay away from her!” Goh yelled, and Koharu snapped out of her daze to see him throw out a Pokéball. “Cinderace, you’re up!”</p>
<p>“Pikachu!” Ash called out.</p>
<p>“Now hold on just a minute,” croaked the old lady, still a hair's breadth away from Koharu. Koharu inched away from her slowly, but she didn’t even glance her way as she said, “Why don’t we all huddle up in the Pokémon Center and I’ll explain everything.”</p>
<p>Ash, Goh and Koharu exchanged looks. </p>
<p><em> I guess it couldn’t hurt, </em> mouthed Goh, and Koharu agreed—there were people in the Center, including the ever-trusty Nurse Joy, after all. </p>
<p>So they nodded, and rushed into the Pokémon Center. </p>
<p>With a start, Koharu realised it would take forever for the old lady to catch up to them—she inched forward one tiny step at a time, as if she were a ballerina on pointe. Except that ballerinas moved faster than her.</p>
<p>Goh let out a sound of frustration, while Koharu frowned, not knowing what to make of this when a few moments ago, the old lady had just <em> lunged </em>towards Koharu with blinding speed. </p>
<p>Ash ran back to the old lady’s side. “Let me help you,” he said brightly, but yelped when she kicked him away with her cane.</p>
<p>“I can help myself just fine, boy,” she said in her raspy voice, huffing. Whether that was due to her physical exertion or exasperation, Koharu couldn’t tell anymore.</p>
<hr/>
<p>Finally, the four of them settled into a booth, where an Indeedee served them glasses of sparkling Pinap juice on a platter. Then they looked up when someone let out a gasp, and Nurse Joy headed towards them, hand to her parted mouth as she exclaimed, “Gym Leader Opal! What a pleasant surprise. What brings you to these parts?”</p>
<p>All three of their mouths fell open in shock.</p>
<p>“<em> Gym Leader? </em>” Goh echoed dumbly. “You’re a Gym Leader?” </p>
<p>The old lady—no, <em> Opal </em> —flashed them a cryptic smile as she gazed out at them from above her cane.  “Now, don’t look so surprised, dearies. Keep your mouths shut lest something flies in. And Indeedee, wouldn’t you be a dear and help get this nasty juice out of my sight. I very much prefer a cup of calming, <em> pink </em> Roserade Tea.”</p>
<p>Koharu gaped at her, and Opal tutted. “Open-mouthed is not a good look on you, girl. But pink is.”</p>
<p>Nurse Joy let out a giggle behind her hand, and Koharu turned to look at her as she explained, “Ms. Opal is the Leader of the Fairy Gym in Ballonlea, not too far away from here, just beyond the Glimwood Tangle. She specialises in Fairy-type Pokémon. Hence her preoccupation with the colour pink.”</p>
<p>“I’m looking for a successor,” said Opal. “Well, that’s not quite right, actually. I’ve already found a successor, and he’s just as pink as you are. But my Gym Trainers are not as young as they used to be, and I need some young blood. I’ve been hearing more and more complaints and requests for resignation.” She smiled at Indeedee as the assistant Pokémon brought her a steaming cup of Roserade Tea. “Ah, thank you.”</p>
<p>“So, when you saw Koharu, you thought she was pink enough to be a Gym Trainer in your Fairy-type Gym?” interrogated Goh, a dubious look on his face. And maybe, Koharu realised, a bit <em> envious </em>.</p>
<p>Opal took a slow, long sip from her teacup. “Well, not exactly. I was thinking that she would be the <em> perfect </em>female lead for my upcoming play. She’s certainly pink enough for that.”</p>
<p>“A… play?” Koharu echoed.</p>
<p>Ash’s eyes lit up. “A play? Sounds like fun!” </p>
<p>Opal chuckled. “Doesn’t it, young man? Ballonlea Stadium used to hold a performance of some sort every year, but no one wants to see the same old people prance around each year.” </p>
<p>Koharu thought, <em> Same </em> old <em> people, huh? Makes sense. </em> </p>
<p>Suddenly, Opal fixed her with a glare, as though she just read her thoughts. “But with my up-and-coming successor, and now, <em> you, </em> we’ve got plenty of interesting things to show the audience.”</p>
<p>It took a while for Koharu to find her voice. “What makes you think I’m going to say yes to acting in your… play?” <em> The female lead, of all things! </em>Koharu thought furiously. All her life, she’d never been anywhere close to a female lead. She felt more like a side character than anything, especially next to Ash and Goh, who were clearly the protagonists of their story. And now Opal saw her and thought she was female lead material?</p>
<p>“Because you’re lost,” said Opal simply. Koharu flinched, remembering her earlier words. “You’re lost, and you’re disoriented, and you’re not sure what your purpose in life is. What you want to do. Where you want to go from here. It’s written all over your face. Same with that Eevee of yours.” She fixed Koharu with that piercing stare of hers. “Right now, you’re just following these two blindly. Whatever they do, you do; wherever they go, you go. Stop that. You can do so much better. You have so much potential. Join me, and I can help you blossom and stand out as your own person.”     </p>
<p>Everyone fell silent for a long moment. Then Koharu recited, “<em> So sincere and straightforward, and yet so lost and disoriented. </em> ” She looked up at Opal. “You weren’t just describing the colour pink. You were describing <em> me. </em> How did you know so much just by taking one look at me?”</p>
<p>She let out a cackle. “It’s the pink that speaks to me, child. Everyone who wears pink has a story to tell.”</p>
<p>They all looked at Opal. She frowned. “If you think I’m going to tell you my dazzling life story in a Pokémon Centre stashed away in the dusty mountains, you’re wrong.”</p>
<p>Koharu stood from her seat. Everyone turned to look at her. “I, um,” she said hesitatingly. “I need some time to think it over.”</p>
<p>Opal watched her carefully. “Don’t take too long, child.”</p>
<p>Ash and Goh got up too, rushing over to her side. “Oh, Koharu!” Goh hissed into her ear, bouncing on his heels. “What an exciting opportunity! Acting the female lead in a play? You’ve just got to take it!”</p>
<p>“Oh, really? Let me see <em> you </em> acting the female lead in a play with Ash as the male lead, then,” sniped Koharu, and Goh’s face turned as red as a Tamato Berry as he shoved her.</p>
<p>“<em> Koharu! </em>”</p>
<p>Her eyes narrowed. “I have better things to do than act in a stupid play. I have school! And I’m not going to just let some random old lady kidnap me and hold me captive in the Galar region for <em> weeks? Months? </em> Just to prepare for some pink parade.”</p>
<p>“I heard that,” Opal said loudly. “And it's <em> months. </em>”</p>
<p>Koharu gave Ash and Goh the <em> I told you so </em> look. Goh held up his hands in defeat, while Ash said, “I think you should go for it, Koharu! Being in a play is super fun. You get to act like someone you’re not.”</p>
<p>She flinched at his words, which cut deeper than he’d probably meant to. <em> You get to act like someone you’re not. </em> </p>
<p>Koharu wasn’t a lot of things. </p>
<p>She heaved a sigh, and walked over to the Rotomi, who sprung awake at her approach. “Let me call Dad.” She could hear the silent surrender in her voice.</p>
<p>After a few rings, Professor Sakuragi picked up. His familiar face filled the screen, and she almost sighed in relief. “Dad!”</p>
<p>His eyes widened. “Koharu? What is it?”</p>
<p>“Some crazy old lady wants to kidnap me to star in her play!” she shouted into the screen.</p>
<p>Professor Sakuragi blinked.</p>
<p>“Now, now, don’t be so crude,” said Opal from behind. Koharu jumped, and shifted a little to the side to let Opal into the frame. “I may have been a little… <em> forward </em> in recruiting your daughter for the female lead of my play, but I promise you, she’ll be in good hands.”</p>
<p>“She’s the Ballonlea Gym Leader!” Ash shouted, and something in Professor Sakuragi’s demeanour changed, as if starting to see the old lady in a new light. Koharu stifled a groan. If all it took for a kidnapper to gain credibility was to become a Gym Leader, she didn’t want to even think of how many other children this lady had stolen away gleefully. Maybe her so-called ‘successor’ had been kidnapped by her, too.</p>
<p>“Don’t worry, I won’t take her by force, of course, if I don’t have your permission,” said Opal, as sweet as sugar. “It’s completely up to her, in the end.”</p>
<p>“I agree,” replied the Professor, and Koharu looked up sharply. “So, Koharu, what do you think?”</p>
<p>“What do <em> I </em> think?” she asked incredulously. “Dad, I called you to ask what <em> you </em> thought about all this!”</p>
<p>“What I think doesn’t matter,” said Professor Sakuragi, tilting his head at her. “What do <em> you </em> want?”</p>
<p>Koharu pressed her lips together, ready to murder him. “I literally <em> don’t know </em>.” Alarmingly, she felt tears begin to prick her eyes.</p>
<p>She didn’t know what she wanted. She’s <em> never </em> known what she really wanted. Opal’s words rang in her head over and over again, like a broken record. <em> Because you’re lost. You’re lost, and you’re disoriented, and you’re not sure what your purpose in life is. What you want to do. Where you want to go from here. </em></p>
<p>“Well,” said her father, gently, “I think you should give it a try. Whatever choice you make, I’ll always be behind you.”</p>
<p>“Thank you, Dad,” she whispered, and cut the call. Radio silence roared in the aftermath.</p>
<p>She stared at the blank screen for a few long moments, studying her lost reflection before taking a deep breath and turning around to face the others.</p>
<p>She lifted her head, and met Opal’s eyes. “I accept.”</p>
<p>The old lady’s eyes twinkled, twin sparkling sapphires in the fading sunlight. “I knew you would, child. And I promise you, you made the right choice.”</p>
<p>“Let’s see about that,” Koharu muttered as she stalked out of the Pokémon Centre, Ash and Goh following hurriedly behind. She’s determined to leave Opal in the dust, but she knew that wasn’t possible.</p>
<p>“I’ve just called a Flying Taxi to Ballonlea,” called Opal from behind, and before Koharu could react, she heard the flap of wings, felt the giant gust of wind and a spray of sand being picked up and launched into her face. “Fit for four. They say two’s company, but four is even better.” She sounded extremely pleased with herself.</p>
<p>“Woah,” Ash and Goh breathed from behind her.</p>
<p>Koharu rubbed the sand out of her eyes, and when she looked up, a giant crow-like Pokémon was perched on the top of a cabin that had appeared a mere metre from her, its strong claws gripping the top as it stared at her with wise, shrewd eyes behind its armour of steel.</p>
<p>“Corviknight,” Goh’s Rotom Phone read out. “The Raven Pokémon. With their great intellect and flying skills, these Pokémon very successfully act as the Galar region's airborne taxi service.”</p>
<p>“Cool,” breathed Goh, lowering his phone to study the creature more closely. </p>
<p>The cabin door opened, and the taxi driver hopped out to help Opal into the cabin. The three of them quickly followed suit, and with a great flap of its wings, Corviknight propelled them into the sky.</p>
<hr/>
<p>This was what riding a Ferris wheel or a cable car probably felt like, Koharu realised as she gazed out of the grimy glass window at the bird’s eye view offered of the Stow-on-Side mountains. She leaned back carefully, glancing at Ash and Goh, who were sitting on the bench across from her, their shoulders and legs almost touching as they chatted animatedly about the Falinks they’d encountered in one of the tunnels. </p>
<p>She pursed her lips. She’d been there, too, but they weren’t exactly including her in the conversation. But she supposed that was her fault, for being so cold and disinterested in the past when they’d tried to talk to her about Pokémon.</p>
<p>“Don’t look so glum, child,” said Opal from beside her, almost making her jump. “We’re here.”</p>
<p>Ash perked up. “So fast?” Goh told him crossly, “Didn’t you hear what Nurse Joy said? Ballonlea and Stow-on-Side are only separated by the Glimwood Tangle!”</p>
<p>“Yes, you’re right,” agreed Opal. “But the sun is setting, and Glimwood Tangle at night can be dangerous, especially for those who are lost and wandering.” She cast a significant look at Koharu. </p>
<p>Koharu looked away.</p>
<p>“Hey, you all right?” Goh asked her as they climbed out of the taxi. </p>
<p><em> I don’t know, </em> Koharu thought, because she didn’t know anything and she’s lost and she hated that Opal could see right through her when even her childhood friend couldn’t. </p>
<p>She was about to say, <em> I’m all right, </em> when she stepped out of the taxi, and all words died in her throat as she looked around at their surroundings.</p>
<p>The sun hadn’t even completely set when they were on the Flying Taxi, but now, her surroundings were blanketed in the darkness of night, the only light being the glowing, bioluminescent toadstools and mushrooms scattered around, growing in the crevices of the giant trees, along the dirt paths and peeking out from behind quaint little cottages overgrown with ivy. There was a magical air to everything, as if the sunlight had shied away in fearful reverence to make way for eternal night, and the Fairy-type Pokémon came out to play. She saw it in the tiny Hattrems nestling on the roof of the Pokémon Center like bird Pokémon, looking right at home. She saw it in the Morelull latching onto the caps of the glowing giant mushrooms as if there was some sort of intoxicating life force that kept them drawn to the place. She heard it in the quiet humming of Nincada resting in the barks of the towering trees, a calming undercurrent that shaped into a dreamy lullaby. Here, the air was colder, fresher, and it settled on Koharu’s skin as if kissing her cheeks and whispering to her that everything would be okay.</p>
<p>It was like stepping into a fairy tale, and Koharu never wanted to leave.</p>
<p>“It’s beautiful,” she whispered, her voice steeped in breathless awe, her eyes fighting to latch onto every detail but unable to take it all in.</p>
<p>“Ee-bui-bui!” Eevee chimed in, eyes shining in the glow of the mushrooms, clearly charmed by it all.</p>
<p>She could hear the smile in Opal’s voice as the old lady walked past her to lead the way. “Welcome to Ballonlea. A charming town where the people make their homes among the trunks of the towering trees.”</p>
<p>“I’ve never seen anything quite like it,” said Koharu, and Opal cackled at that. She frowned. “What?”</p>
<p>“For the record, child, you’ve never really seen much, have you?”</p>
<p>Koharu looked down at Eevee, then at her shoes. “No.” Then she sighed. “But I guess I’m here to see more.”</p>
<p>“Yes,” agreed Opal, and she heard the quiet approval in her voice.</p>
<p>Together, they walked past the line of half-timbered cottages, a few people peeking at them out of their windows curiously. Some greeted the Gym Leader, while a few Cottonee brushed past Koharu playfully, the caress of soft cotton against her cheeks making her giggle before they spun away in the gentle wind again.</p>
<p>“This place is awesome!” exclaimed Ash, but Goh seemed a little hesitant in his agreement. </p>
<p>Koharu glanced back at him. “What’s wrong?” He looked up and forced a smile at her.</p>
<p>“It’s beautiful, but… this place sorta gives me the creeps.”</p>
<p>“You’re afraid of the dark?” questioned Ash, but Goh shook his head. </p>
<p>“Oh come on, Ash, we sleep in the dark together every night, you know I’m not afraid of the dark. No, it’s not because of that. It’s just… Ballonlea is obviously a home to a lot of Fairy-type Pokémon. This place is teeming with them. And you know what they say about Fairy Types.” </p>
<p>His voice lowered to a whisper. “They’re magical and beautiful, but they have a penchant for trickery. They like to haunt places and lead travellers astray using Will-O-Wisp. Why do you think so many people get lost in Glimwood Tangle? And people are known to get sick or deformed after encounters with Fairy-Type Pokémon. They love to harm humans, whether it be for a harmless prank or for entertainment.”</p>
<p>A chill ran down Koharu’s spine, and the three of them fell deathly silent.</p>
<p>“When an old lady’s waiting for you to catch up to her, you know something’s very wrong with you,” called Opal from ahead of them, making them jump.</p>
<p>“Well, we’re already here,” whispered Koharu, as they ducked under a giant tree root. “We can’t turn back now. And I’m going to stay here for actual months, Goh. I’m stuck here, like it or not.”</p>
<p>“I get how this place can seem creepy, but don’t worry, Goh! Just stay close to me, and I’ll protect you!” declared Ash, throwing an arm around Goh’s shoulder and pulling him closer, making Goh flush a pink so lovely Opal would’ve killed to see.</p>
<p>“F-fine…”</p>
<p>Koharu rolled her eyes and caught up to Opal’s side. She looked up at the stadium before their eyes, a muted tapestry of purple and pink with the Fairy symbol emblazoned on the front.</p>
<p>“We’re here,” said Opal, and as if by magic, the doors slid open automatically in welcome. Then Koharu realised it wasn’t by magic, because there was a boy standing at the entrance of the Gym, looking like another walking candy cane as he crossed his arms and glared at them.</p>
<p>Behind them, a shrill ringtone pierced the air. “<em> This is an official battle challenge. This is an official battle challenge. </em>”</p>
<p>Koharu turned to see Ash holding up his Rotom Phone, staring at the screen before showing it to Koharu. She peered at the display, where a picture of a Trainer with his rank—#929—had popped up, bearing the World Coronation Series emblem. </p>
<p>“<em> Do you wish to accept? Or reject? </em>” the Rotom Phone asked Ash, who lowered his phone to look at the boy standing at the entrance. A smirk crawled up his lips, a familiar expression he wore in the face of battle.</p>
<p>“I accept!”</p>
<p>“Now hold on just a minute,” said Opal. To Koharu’s alarm, she raised her arm to clock the boy’s head with her umbrella, who yelped in pain. “What did I tell you about participating in the Series, boy?”</p>
<p>“But, Ms. Opal,” the boy protested, and Koharu turned to study him. He was considerably older than the three of them, maybe around fourteen or fifteen, with a head of platinum blond hair not unlike the fleece of a Wooloo. He donned a Gym uniform of baby pink and blue, similar to the colours Opal wore, so Koharu guessed that he was a Gym Trainer wearing the Fairy Gym uniform. With striking violet eyes, he glared at the three of them as he held up his phone—a magenta shade, and very, very much pink.</p>
<p>This had to be the ‘successor’ Opal was talking about.</p>
<p>The boy was still talking, wringing his hands like they were a wet cloth, words pouring out of him like a rapid waterfall. “I <em> need </em> this. I was thrown out of the Gym Challenge, for goodness’ sake! The World Coronation Series is perfect for me. No one can stop me from signing up, and no one can stop me from participating. If you would just let me prove my strength—”     </p>
<p>“What you need, boy,” interrupted Opal, “is to remain focused on perfecting your pink.”</p>
<p>“Ms. Opal,” said Ash suddenly. “Let me battle him.” </p>
<p>He fixed the boy with a thoughtful stare, who tensed a little at the attention. </p>
<p>“This guy… he’s supposed to be the next Gym Leader, right? I’ve challenged and defeated dozens of Gyms. I just defeated Bea earlier today. If he can beat me, he’s well on his way to becoming a formidable Gym Leader.” </p>
<p>If it was any other person, Koharu would’ve thought they sounded absolutely arrogant, but there was nothing arrogant in the way Ash was speaking. He was serious and thoughtful and humble, and even the boy seemed to recognise that, with the way he straightened slightly at his words.</p>
<p>Opal sighed, waving her hand dismissively. “All right, all right. But let me warn you, he’s hardly yet pink enough.”</p>
<p>“I’ll show you, old gran,” he shouted back at her as he followed Ash into the Stadium.</p>
<p>Opal’s smile sharpened. “Call me that again and see what happens.”</p>
<hr/>
<p>The Drone Rotom whizzed into the Stadium and past the double doors, through the basement— a stage that Koharu assumed was for staging the play—and another set of doors, leading them to a hallway to the pitch. Ash gasped in delight, remarking that it was the same as Bea’s Gym.</p>
<p>The boy glanced at him. “You’ve… never been in the Gym Challenge?” </p>
<p>Ash shook his head, and a half-smirk appeared on the boy’s face. There was something strange about that look, as if it was something that came too easily to him, but yet it felt strangely lacking at the same time. “Well, I suppose not. For all your talk about being strong and defeating countless Gym Leaders, no one wants to endorse you, in the end.”</p>
<p><em> Weren’t you thrown out of the Gym Challenge? </em> Koharu thought to herself, shaking her head.</p>
<p>“I wanted to take a break from participating in Leagues,” said Ash, flashing an easy smile at him. “When I battled Mr. Leon a few months ago and lost, I <em> knew </em> I wanted to beat him the next time we battle! That’s why I decided to join the World Coronation Series.”</p>
<p>The boy’s eyes widened. “You… you battled <em> Champion Leon? </em>” </p>
<p>Ash grinned. “Sure did.”</p>
<p>“B-but Leon never battles any random stranger off the street,” sputtered the boy.</p>
<p>“Never mind that. Oh, by the way, I never introduced myself! I’m Ash, from Pallet Town! And this is my partner Pikachu. These are my friends! We’re research fellows from the Sakuragi Institute in the Kanto region.”</p>
<p>“I’m Goh, from Vermillion City,” greeted Goh, a little warily. “It’s nice to meet you.”</p>
<p>“I’m Chloe, also from Vermillion City,” she murmured. She introduced herself by her Galarian name. It made it easier for foreigners to pronounce, instead of stumbling over <em> Koharu </em> . It was like how Ash’s name was actually <em> Satoshi </em> , but <em> Ash </em> had caught on pretty fast as a nickname. “And this is Eevee.” Eevee chimed in happily, and she smiled down at her.</p>
<p>Their voices echoed conspicuously in the hallway. The boy studied them for a while, before saying curtly, “I’m Bede.”</p>
<p>“So… you’re Opal’s ‘successor’?” Koharu ventured to ask, after an awkward silence befell the four of them. “The next Ballonlea Gym Leader?”</p>
<p>Bede exhaled. “Yes. And you?”</p>
<p>Koharu blinked. “Me?”</p>
<p>“Yes,” he said without looking back at her. “You’re plenty pink. She brought you here, didn’t she? What for?”</p>
<p>“Well…” Koharu dragged out. “For the play?”</p>
<p>Bede’s tense shoulders visibly relaxed, and when he next spoke, the edge to his voice was gone. “Right. The play. Trust that old lady to pick someone right off the street. Again.”</p>
<p>“So, she picked you right off the street too?” Goh asked, but Bede declined to answer as they walked out into the pitch, and for the second time today, Koharu’s breath was stolen away by the sight. </p>
<p>Earlier today at the Stow-on-Side Stadium, she’d been in the empty spectator stands, watching Ash and Bea battle it out on the field. But to be the one standing on the pitch herself, it was a completely different experience, something out of the world. The vast expanse of field seemed to stretch out forever, like an ocean of green extending past the horizon. When she looked up, the sloping walls of the stadium towered over her, threatening to swallow her up with their vast enormity. Her eyes swept past the sea of red that was the spectator stands, a pulsing ring that enclosed her into the heat of the battle. </p>
<p>“Wow,” she breathed.</p>
<p>“Quit gawking, girl,” called Opal. “Come join me at the side. The other boy, too.”</p>
<p>“<em> Welcome! Welcome! Welcome! </em>” the Rotom Drone blared as Koharu and Goh sat down on a bench on the side of the pitch together with Opal. Ash and Bede made their ways to the opposite ends of the battlefield. </p>
<p>“The Pokémon World Coronation Series has approved this Great Class battle! This battle will be between Ballonlea Stadium’s Bede and Ash of Pallet Town! This battle will be a 1v1.”</p>
<p>As the Drone Rotom continued to explain the rules of the battle, Opal turned to Koharu. “Now that you’ve seen my successor, what do you think of him?”</p>
<p>Koharu raised an eyebrow. “You’re asking me?” When Opal didn’t react at all, she huffed and replied, “Well, he’s, er, pink, all right, but he seems really… sulky.” For lack of a better word.</p>
<p> “And bitter,” added Goh. “No offense.”</p>
<p>Opal chuckled. “None taken from me, dearie, but Bede wouldn’t exactly be pleased to hear that from you.” Then her voice softened. “He’s had a hard time and all, but he’s learning to soften up, slowly but surely. Let’s see how he measures up to your young friend over here.”</p>
<p>“Oh, Ash will <em> destroy </em> him,” said Goh vehemently, and Koharu slapped his arm. “What?”</p>
<p>“Battle, begin!” the Rotom Drone announced, and the battle sprung into action. </p>
<p>Ash sent out Pikachu—as expected—and Bede sent out a Pokémon that Koharu had never seen before. It looked pretty cute.</p>
<p>“Who’s that Pokémon?” she murmured, and this time, she was quicker to hold up her Rotom phone than Goh to scan and identify the Pokémon before her.</p>
<p>“Mawile,” her Rotom answered. “The Deceiver Pokémon. A Steel and Fairy Type. It uses its docile-looking face to lull foes into complacency, then bites with its huge, relentless jaws.”</p>
<p>Goh glanced sideways at Koharu. “What did I say about Fairy-type Pokémon?”</p>
<p>“Okay, point taken.” </p>
<p>They leaned back and watched them dish out moves and dodge each other in a game of cat-and-mouse. As vicious as Mawile was, Ash ended up winning the battle not long after. He and Pikachu high-five-tail-slapped each other while Bede slunk away in sulking defeat. The difference in skill was palpable, Koharu realised, and she wondered how much Ash had been through to become so good for his age.</p>
<p>“The Pokémon World Coronation Series rankings will be updated based on the results of this match.” The Drone Rotom whizzed away, and both Ash and Bede’s phones chimed to reflect their updated rankings.</p>
<p>“How is it?” Goh asked, running up to peek over Ash’s shoulder. “Wow! You made it into the Ultra Class! Congratulations, Ash!”</p>
<p>Bede stalked through the happy celebration over to the bench where Opal and Koharu sat, and plopped down next to Opal with a half-sigh, half-growl. </p>
<p>“Better luck next time, dearie,” said Opal mildly. Bede ignored her snide remark with practised deftness. </p>
<p>“Ms. Opal, you were right. I’m not ready.” He buried his face in his hands and let out a soft groan.</p>
<p>“Your pink is lacking,” agreed Opal. “But that’s what I’m here for.” </p>
<p>She turned to Koharu, Ash and Goh. “Won’t you three join the two of us for dinner at our small, humble abode?”</p>
<p>“Sure, thank you,” said Ash, while Goh elbowed him sharply, mouthing, <em> Don’t accept their food and drink! </em> </p>
<p>Koharu wasn’t sure what he was getting at, but her attention was quickly diverted when Bede remarked, “You’ll have to walk faster this time, old gran,” and gulped and ran for his life when Opal threatened to throw him to the Morgrem in the Glimwood Tangle.</p>
<hr/>
<p>They had a simple dinner—Galarians seemed to love curry more than anything else, having the dish in their homes as well as outside in the wild. Thankfully, as Kantonians they were more than accustomed to curry. They gulped down the steaming curry rice—even Goh, who was so reluctant to accept their hospitality a few moments before, wolfed the food down like his life depended on it, and Koharu was tempted to poke fun at him for the sudden change of mind.</p>
<p>Bede was the only one who seemed not to be enjoying the dinner—he poked at his rice with his fork, spinning it round and round as if he were picking up a forkful of spaghetti. Opal chided him gently not to pick at his food, but Koharu could see the quiet concern in her eyes, barely concealed behind her lifted teacup. </p>
<p>“I believe Chloe already filled you in before,” said Opal suddenly, breaking the long silence, “but she will be joining our theatre troupe, playing the part of the Princess in our play. You two will have to learn to work together for the next few months.”</p>
<p>Koharu could feel Bede’s quiet scorn pinning her down even without glancing up at him. </p>
<p>“Not a problem,” he said, making it sound like there was absolutely a problem.</p>
<p>“Rehearsals start first thing tomorrow morning,” continued Opal. “Chloe, you can stay in the guest room.”</p>
<p>“But Ms. Opal,” spluttered Bede suddenly, “that’s hardly appropriate.”</p>
<p>“What’s hardly appropriate?”</p>
<p>A blush had crawled its way up Bede’s face, painting dark pink splotches across his cheeks. It was not a good look for him. </p>
<p>“For a boy and a girl to sleep in the same room,” he forced out through gritted teeth.</p>
<p>Opal lifted an eyebrow. “Who said anything about you two staying in the same room? You’ll be sleeping on the <em> couch </em> . In the <em> living room. </em>”    </p>
<p>Bede’s face turned even redder, but this time it was clearly out of disbelief and incredulity. “But, <em> Ms. Opal—!” </em></p>
<p>“If you ‘But Ms. Opal’ me one more time, boy, you’re sleeping outside with the Morelull,” she snapped. Then she took a long sip of her tea. Koharu wondered how much tea she drank in a day, and whether it was good for her health. (It couldn’t be.)</p>
<p>Bede fell silent, but Koharu could literally see him fuming on the inside. </p>
<p>“I can sleep on the couch instead,” she offered awkwardly, but Opal silenced her with a glare. </p>
<p>“It’s hardly gentlemanly of him to let a girl sleep on the couch. He still has much to learn if he wants to reach a satisfactory level of pink.”</p>
<p>“I’m right here, you know,” said Bede loudly. </p>
<p>The only sound of affirmation was Ash’s too-loud munching, and Koharu groaned inwardly.</p>
<p>This was going to be the longest meal of her life.</p>
<hr/>
<p>But even the longest meal of her life soon came to an end, and before Koharu knew it, she was standing at the doorstep, greeting Ash and Goh farewell. </p>
<p>It felt incredibly surreal to be the one they were saying goodbye to, and not the other way around like it used to be—normally, she would stand in the doorway of the Sakuragi Institute and say goodbye to them and watch them leave on their journeys, but this time, <em> she </em> was the one leaving on her journey, and they were the ones to bid their well wishes to her.</p>
<p>But it felt surprisingly good, somehow, to be the one setting off on a journey. To be the independent one, the one with ambitious goals and dreams for once. It seemed to fill her with a feverish energy, and for the first time in her life, Koharu began to understand why Ash and Goh were the way they were.</p>
<p>“Best wishes,” said Ash, and Koharu tilted her head at the unusual greeting. He explained with a smile, “It’s a thing you say in Unova when you’re saying goodbye to someone or sending them off on a journey! Basically, you’re saying, <em> I wish you the best of luck on your journey. </em>”</p>
<p>She felt her lips curve up into a smile. She was smiling more often these days. “Thank you. And best wishes to you as well.”</p>
<p>Goh pulled her into a tight hug. She blinked, stiffening for a moment before returning the embrace, leaning into the warmth of their childhood friendship. She heard what was unspoken, <em> I’m so happy for you. </em></p>
<p>Koharu liked to think that she was happy for herself, too.</p>
<p>Opal gifted the two boys a small bundle wrapped with a silk pink cloth. It radiated a light fragrance that made them sniff at it curiously. “Roserade Tea,” she clarified. “Give the Professor my regards.”</p>
<p>With that, they left. It was pretty unceremonious. Koharu watched the two of them edge closer to each other as their backs receded into the distance, watched the gap she’d driven in between the two of them merge and coalesce into a whole again, as if she had never been there in the first place, and thought to herself, <em> Maybe they’re happy to have me gone.  </em></p>
<p>“Welcome to hell,” was all Bede said as she passed him in the doorway.</p>
<p>Opal let her into the guest room, where Bede packed up his belongings in silence, avoiding her gaze like his life depended upon it. There was something dangerous in his expression, like a pack of knives and daggers that threatened to slash her if she came too close. As if something had hurt him and the only way he knew how to deal with it was to hurt everything back.</p>
<p>The room was pointedly pink, even pinker than her room back home. The walls were stripped bare, bits of wallpaper drooping like orange peels. She resisted the urge to pull them straight off. Cute little antique ornaments adorned the walls, alcoves of the sepia-toned past. One of them was a framed picture hanging at eye level, and the young woman photographed stared right back at Koharu, sending chills down her spine. She set her backpack down against the window alcove, and sat down next to it, not daring to draw the ghostly, pink curtains to peek outside. Goosebumps prickled the skin of her bare arms and she pulled her knees to her chest and dropped her head against her thighs.</p>
<p>A while after, she untangled herself and made her way to the single-sized bed, the pastel pink of its patchwork quilt blanket failing to calm her growing homesickness. The fabric felt rough and unfamiliar against her skin, and she stiffened when she felt a small, hard lump—<em> something </em>—press against her back when she lowered herself into the bed. Eevee curled up beside her shivering figure.</p>
<p><em> Welcome to hell, </em> Bede had said, and he probably meant for the training tomorrow, but <em> this, </em> Koharu felt, was already hell. And the worst part was that this was just the beginning.   </p>
<p>The first night Koharu was kidnapped by the faeries, she cried herself to sleep.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Act Two</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Koharu's first day of fairy boot camp begins.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <b>Act Two</b>
</p><p><strong>Compassion<br/></strong>By Miller Williams</p><p>Have compassion for everyone you meet,<br/>even if they don’t want it. What seems conceit,<br/>bad manners, or cynicism is always a sign<br/>of things no ears have heard, no eyes have seen.<br/>You do not know what wars are going on<br/>down there where the spirit meets the bone.</p><hr/><p><b>🌸🌳</b> [上午6:03]<b><br/></b>good morning</p><p><b>🐐🔥</b> [上午6:05]<b><br/></b>Koharu it’s 3 o’clock in the afternoon in Kanto try again</p><p><b>🌸🌳</b> [上午6:05]<b><br/></b>shut up it’s 6 am in galar, try <em>that</em></p><p>🧢⚡ [上午6:12]<b><br/></b>Good morning, Koharu! :D</p><hr/><p>“Someone didn’t sleep well last night,” said Bede loftily as Koharu stumbled to the breakfast table—a round oak table with a tripod stand—nearly knocking over the plates and cups laid out in the process. </p><p>Opal tutted at her clumsiness and remarked something about balance training exercises before inviting her to sit down on a chair right between the two of them. Koharu shoved aside her discomfort and obliged, letting Opal place two pieces of golden-brown toast, a bowl of strawberry-and-blueberry yoghurt, and a cup of steaming hot coffee in front of her. It was a far cry away from what she usually had back home—but then again, the Kantonians and the Galarians were worlds apart in culture, especially when it came to food. </p><p>“How can you tell?” she asked brightly, as she took a sip of her coffee and instantly regretted it. <em> Ten year-olds should not be having coffee, </em> her mother had always told her in a stern voice, and she understood exactly why now.</p><p>Bede didn’t seem to catch her obvious sarcasm. “How anyone tells someone didn’t sleep well. Dark eye circles are the first indicator, naturally. And then there’s your disorientation, almost knocking over the whole table.”</p><p>Koharu’s jaw locked. “There was something hard in the bed. That’s why I couldn’t sleep well.” She neglected to mention her homesickness and how lost she felt. That would just be another thing for him to pick on.</p><p>Opal set her cup down. </p><p>Bede scoffed, a smirk unfurling on his face. “Something hard in the bed? I’ve been sleeping in that bed for the past two weeks and it’s perfectly fine. Something wrong with you?”    </p><p>“No,” said Opal suddenly before Koharu could think of a comeback, something new in her voice, “there’s nothing wrong with her. Child, how were you able to feel the pea under such a thick mattress?”</p><p>Koharu jabbed a finger at her. She’d caught her now. “Aha! So <em> you </em> were the one who put that thing there?”</p><p>Opal laughed and lifted the cup to her lips. “Guilty as charged.”</p><p>“What’s this all about?” asked Bede. That edge in his voice had returned with that stormy look, and she tried her best to shove aside the discomfort that welled up in her.</p><p>She took out the pea from her pocket, holding it between her index finger and her thumb for the two of them to see. “All night I felt something prodding me in the back, so I got up and lifted the mattress and found <em> this </em> buried underneath.”</p><p>“And I was the one who put it there,” added Opal, sounding extremely satisfied with herself. “This proves that she is a true princess.”</p><p>Koharu blinked. </p><p>“Prin… cess?” repeated Bede, as if trying to make sense of the word. Koharu couldn’t blame the guy. It wasn’t exactly a term used extensively in modern times, much less in daily conversation and much less used in regards to <em> her. </em></p><p>“Oh yes,” the old lady said nonchalantly. “Haven’t you heard of the fairy tale about the princess and the pea? Famous story that any parent loves to tell children in Galar.” Koharu saw Bede stiffen, perhaps out of recognition of the tale. </p><p>“The story tells of a prince who wants to marry a princess but is having difficulty finding a suitable wife—something is always wrong with the princesses he meets and he cannot be certain they are real princesses because they have bad table manners or they are not his type. </p><p>“One stormy night, a young woman drenched with rain seeks shelter in the prince’s castle. She claims to be a princess, so the prince’s mother decides to test her by placing a pea in the bed that she is offered for the night, covered by thick mattresses and twenty feather-beds. Only a real princess would have the sensitivity to feel a pea through such thick bedding, you see. </p><p>“In the morning, the guest tells her hosts that she had endured a sleepless night, kept awake by something hard in the bed that she is certain has bruised her. With the proof of her bruised back, the princess passes the test and the prince rejoices happily, having found his true princess. They got married and lived happily ever after.”</p><p>“That’s a terrible story,” said Koharu at last.</p><p>How could the prince judge if the women were actual princesses or not based on whether they had good table manners or whether they were to his liking? Sounded pretty shallow and self-absorbed and misogynistic, to be honest. And who cared about whether someone was a <em> true </em> princess or not when it came to marriage and love and the like? That shouldn’t matter, not as much as <em> true love </em>—falling in love with the person for who they were and not for their nobility. And how did that factor into whether they would live happily ever after or not?</p><p>“And yet, it’s what happened to you, child,” pointed out Opal, a manicured nail tapping against the porcelain cup. “And this proves you are a princess truly worthy of playing the part of the princess in my play.”</p><p>She frowned. “But… how could I have sensed the pea? It’s impossible.”</p><p>“There’s a lot of things in this world that you don’t know yet. Just think of it as a little Fairy-type magic.”</p><p>“Fairy-type… magic?” Koharu felt faint. First an old lady kidnapped her to the faerie realm. Now magic was real?</p><p>“Is the play about this same fairy tale?” she asked, to distract herself.</p><p>“Not quite. Though it’s certainly inspired by it.” Opal shot a sly look towards Bede, who looked at her in alarm. “Naturally, Bede is the prince.”</p><p>“I shudder to think about having to wed to her,” said Bede in a monotone voice, and Opal said, “I would clock you in the head right now if not for the fact that this is a peaceful breakfast and I hold peace above everything else,” to which Bede replied swiftly, “Old lady, ‘peace’ is not in your dictionary and was never an option to you—I know that better than anyone else, remember?” And Koharu was rudely reminded of yesterday’s events, when Opal had lunged straight at her and declared her to be hers.</p><p>Maybe Bede had gone through a similar experience.</p><p>“I’ve decided,” said Opal suddenly, her eyes alight. The both of them turned to look at her. “Child, you have the potential to become one of my esteemed Ballonlea Gym Trainers—and perhaps even more. Today, you’ll start training alongside rehearsals. Bede can show you the ropes.”</p><p>“What?” she said.</p><p>“<em> What? </em>” yelled Bede, eyes flaming, and she stifled a sigh.</p><p>This was going to be a long day.</p><hr/><p><b>🌸🌳</b> [上午6:44]<b><br/></b>they want to make me pink</p><p><b>🐐🔥</b> [上午6:47]<br/>???</p><p><b>🌸🌳</b> [上午6:48]<b><br/></b>you heard me<b><br/></b>help</p><p><b>🐐🔥</b> [上午6:49]<b><br/></b>We’re literally half a world away I don’t think we can help</p><p><b>🌸🌳</b> [上午6:49]<b><br/></b> i know an excuse when i see one</p><p><b>🐐🔥</b> [上午6:49]<b><br/></b>…</p><p><b>🧢⚡</b> [上午6:51]<b><br/></b>Have fun, Koharu! :D</p><p><b>🌸🌳</b> [上午6:52]<b><br/></b>shut</p><p><b>🧢⚡</b> [上午6:52]<b><br/></b>:”(</p><p><b>🌸🌳</b> [上午6:53]<b><br/></b>i mean, thanks<br/>also im a princess now</p><p><b>🐐🔥</b> [上午6:54] <b><br/></b>???<br/>Koharu I don’t care if you’re a princess or not you gotta apologise to Ash right now<br/>Wait but what do you mean you’re a princess<br/>Koharu?<br/>…<br/>Koharu???<b><br/></b>KOHARU</p><hr/><p>They stood in the basement of Ballonlea Stadium, Koharu and Bede atop the low stage. There was a musty smell to the air, and everything was grey except for the mural behind them: a splash of pastel pink, blue and teal that seemed to light up the whole room. </p><p>That was, until Annette—one of the Gym Trainers, dressed in the same pink-and-blue candy cane uniform that Bede was clad in—snapped her fingers, and the whole place became cast in a ghostly magenta light that illuminated every suspended dust particle a luminescent pink. It was hauntingly beautiful.</p><p>Opal took her seat offstage, behind a small rickety table on which she placed a spiral notebook and a pen, while Annette handed them each a bound bundle of paper. Koharu squinted at the words printed on the cover.</p><p>“<em> The Prince, the Princess and the Pauper, </em>” she read aloud.</p><p>Opal winked at her. “‘P’ is for pink.” </p><p>Beside her, Bede made a face.</p><p>Koharu ignored him and scanned the room. There was no one else besides the two of them, Opal and Annette. This was hardly a complete cast to stage a play, and she said just that.</p><p>Bede snorted at her words. “You haven’t been in a play before and it shows.”</p><p>“Seems like your attitude needs a little adjusting, boy,” said Opal icily. “And as for rehearsals, not everyone will be present at one point in time. Different people come on at different times when their part calls for it. Don’t worry, the whole village is participating. This is a Gym, after all, and the Gym Trainers and I will have to entertain challengers soon. 2pm to 5.30pm daily, to be precise. And during that period of time, you and Bede still have training to do.”</p><p>Bede groaned under his breath, but one look at Opal told Koharu the old lady had heard it all the same. Strangely, she decided to let Bede off the hook this time. Maybe she was no-nonsense when it came to rehearsals. Koharu stamped down her nervousness and flipped the cover to scan the first page.</p><p>ACT I, SCENE I</p><p>
  <em> A rooftop restaurant in a five-star hotel in Wyndon, Galar. It is 7pm, the ripe time for dinner, and a rich, luxuriant dinner it is—just like everything else in this glittering city.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> LOUIS, 14, illegitimate Prince of Galar, surveys the view of the city from his seat—the table is covered in a pristine white silk cloth, and the gilded candelabrum burns with wavering golden flames, illuminating the dishes beneath—a pink steak drizzled with a glossy gold sauce, sprinkled with basil, a wine glass half-empty with a yellow-gold drink. LOUIS’s fingers glitter with golden rings and ruby gems, and too-big golden bracelets slink down his arm, his wrists too thin to hold his wealth. He is clad in a grey suit that’s too baggy for him, and is presently throwing one of his tantrums, to disguise the fact that he has no will of his own. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> A horde of servants linger around him, ready to be at his beck and call—but they are distinctly nervous, fidgeting incessantly, shuffling on their feet. One of them, ERIN, has her head bowed as she answers to the prince. </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Above them, a tempestuous noise of thunder and lightning is heard. </em>
</p><p>LOUIS. No eggs! No eggs!! Thousand thunders, what do you mean by no eggs?</p><p>ERIN [<em> shakily </em>] Your highness: please, I beg you. This is not the time. There is a storm coming our way.</p><p>LOUIS. A storm! Let it come, and it shall face the wrath of Prince Louis IV, rightful heir to the throne of Galar. See if it still dares!</p><p>ERIN. [<em> sternly </em> ] Your highness: <em> what cares these roarers for the name of king? </em> I fear the Darkest Day is descending upon us again, and no one is safe in the eye of <em> this </em> tempest. We have to get you to a safe place, now. Or face the wrath of your father.</p><p>
  <em> LOUIS tenses. A flash of lightning, followed by the roar of thunder.  </em>
</p><p>LOUIS. [<em> sulkily </em>] All right.</p><p>… </p><p>“Ms. Opal.” Something in Bede’s voice made Koharu tear her eyes from the script. Something was wrong. His whole body was visibly shaking, and his copy of the script had fallen to the ground, splayed into two against the concrete. His face contorted, his eyes filled with tears, he said in a choked voice, “I can’t take part in your stupid play.”</p><p>Koharu realised then, that it was anger, sheer rage and hurt that had possessed his body, and took a small step back. Suddenly, a Pokémon she’d never seen before appeared out of thin air in front of Bede, an arm-like appendage raised and ready to strike. Koharu took a double take at the witch-like creature. </p><p>“And why not, child?” asked Opal, sounding slightly miffed. Koharu shot her a warning glare, which bounced straight off her. </p><p>Bede’s face was full of hurt and wounded pride and betrayal, looking exactly like a wounded animal that had fallen into a trap, closed off and unable to escape. She wondered what it was in the script that had triggered him, then decided not to wonder any longer.</p><p>“You know exactly why, old lady,” spat Bede, glaring at Opal. “Find someone else to be your ‘Louis’. I can’t—no, I <em> won’t </em>—play the scapegoat a second time.”</p><p>With that, he stormed off, his footsteps pounding against the floor and sending thunderous echoes reverberating around the entire basement. The Pokémon followed, shivering with every step he took. He shoved past a slightly bemused Annette and slammed the door, a gunshot that left Koharu’s ears ringing.</p><p>Silence.</p><p>“Um,” said Koharu after a while, and it was like the room sprung to life with her voice. Annette sighed and shook her head, and Opal closed her notebook and lifted her head to look at Koharu.</p><p>“Should I go after him?” she asked, but Opal shook her head. </p><p>“Let him run off for a while. He’ll come back anyway.”</p><p>Koharu wanted to argue, but one look from the Gym Leader silenced her. </p><p>“Let’s work on your lines,” she said, and Koharu glanced down at her script, then Bede’s copy, left strewn on the ground like a white flag.</p><p>“Am I, uh,” she said hesitantly. “Am I playing Erin?”</p><p>Opal cracked up. Koharu didn’t see what was so funny, but maybe that was her own ignorance speaking again. “Oh, child, of course you’re not playing Erin,” she said between guffaws. “That would be Annetta.”</p><p>“Annette,” corrected Annette in a dull voice, giving Koharu the feeling that this happened a lot. Opal didn’t seem to hear her. Maybe she was hard of hearing. Or maybe she was just ignoring Annette.</p><p>“The princess enters in Scene Two,” continued Opal. Koharu flipped the pages noisily, the sound too loud in the quiet basement. Suddenly, she missed Bede’s overbearing presence. “A girl by the name of Eden.”</p><p>ACT I, SCENE II</p><p>
  <em> The Darkest Day is upon Galar. Creatures are turning gigantic left and right, wreaking havoc and chaos. A blood red cloud swirls into the eye of the storm, where a beast, ETERNATUS, lurks above the whole scene. In the eye, all is calm, like the doldrums, a half-vacuum where a 13 year-old girl, EDEN, kneels with her head bowed before the beast. She is dressed in tattered grey robes, her skin smeared and crusted with dirt as she clasps her hands together in prayer. </em>
</p><p>EDEN.<br/>If by your art, my dearest father, you have<br/>Put the wild beams in this roar, allay them.<br/>The sky, it seems, would pour down stinking pitch. </p><p>O, I have suffered with those that I saw suffer:<br/>A brave vessel (who had no doubt some<br/>Noble creature in her) dashed to all pieces!<br/>O, the cry did knock against my very heart!<br/>Poor souls, they perished. Had I been<br/>Any god of power, I would have sunk the sky<br/>Within the earth, or ere it should the good city<br/>So have swallowed, and the fraughting souls within her.</p><p>ETERNATUS [<em> booming </em>] Be collected. No more amazement. Tell your piteous heart there’s no harm done.</p><p>EDEN. [<em> bitterly </em>] O, woe the day!</p><p>ETERNATUS. No harm.<br/>I have done nothing but in care of thee—<br/>Of thee my dear one, thee my daughter—who<br/>Art ignorant of what thou art, naught knowing<br/>Of whence I am, nor that I am more better<br/>Than Eternatus, master of the darkest day,<br/>And thy no greater father.</p><p>… </p><p>She couldn’t read on any longer.</p><p>“What kind of nonsense is this?” she demanded, feeling the urge to slam the script down onto the floor just as Bede had done. “Why am I speaking in some weird—Old Galarian?” She didn’t even know how to pronounce half of those words, and she knew she would sound like a complete idiot reciting that monologue.</p><p>“Early Modern Galarian,” corrected Opal. “I told you this was a mishmash of several famous tales and other plays, retold through a Galarian context. Call it dramatic license, if you like.”</p><p>Koharu felt her knees weaken. “I can’t do this.” She felt her voice tremble, and Opal’s face turned as dark as the Darkest Day in the play.</p><p>“Chin up, girl,” Opal snapped, voice crackling like a whip, and Koharu flinched, blinking down the hot tears that had surfaced too fast and pricked her eyes. “Gather yourself.”</p><p>Koharu smothered the anger that surfaced, quick and hot and fast, and stuffed it down furiously. Opal was right about one thing—this was no time to be backing down. This was no time to be crying. She hadn’t come here, a faerie town in a whole other region, just to run back to safe old Vermillion City and her father. She was weak, but she had to become stronger.</p><p>Opal’s eyes glowed in approval, but Koharu wasn’t sure she liked that look on her face. “Good. Now, read off your script as well as you can manage, and we’ll adjust you from there.”</p><hr/><p><b>🌸🌳</b> [上午10:13]<b><br/></b>o woe the day</p><p><b>🐐🔥</b> [上午10:19]<b><br/></b>???????<br/>Koharu pls you’re scaring me<br/>Btw we’re having dinner at your house and Yamper misses you like crazy<br/>Come back soon princess</p><p><b>🌸🌳</b> [上午10:21] <b><br/></b>call me princess one more time and see what happens</p><p><b>🐐🔥</b> [上午10:22]<br/>You can’t do anything, you’re on the other side of the planet</p><p>🌸🌳 [上午10:23]<br/>try me<br/>…tell yamper i miss him too</p><hr/><p>Three hours later, Koharu collapsed onto one of the grey couches in the foyer, legs aching from standing the entire time and voice dulled out. Her throat echoed hoarsely as she hummed a nonsense tune completely counter to the cheery Gym Challenge music that played on repeat in the speakers above. </p><p>For some reason, the soundtrack reminded her of Ash and Gou, and that made her even more annoyed.</p><p>“<em> And Melony’s second Pokémon goes down! </em>” roared a commentator over the speakers, and Eevee yelped, jumping out of her arms. </p><p>As she gathered Eevee back into her lap, Koharu looked up at the giant plasma TV screen just above the fitting room—just in time to see a white, hulking Pokémon she’d never seen before buckle and collapse. </p><p>Overhead, the sound of a crowd cheering exploded in the speakers, making her wince. She sat up a little straighter, frowning, trying to make sense of what was going on. The TV was showing some sort of… Gym match, as deduced from the background: the pitch of a stadium, most likely from another Gym in Galar that was not Ballonlea or Stow-on-Side. </p><p>The TV showed her a close-up of a woman’s face, with crystal blue eyes and pale green hair, contorting in obvious frustration as she recalled the fallen Pokémon. </p><p>That must be the Gym Leader, Melony, Koharu thought. Then the camera panned to the right, and she blinked. </p><p>At the other side of the battlefield stood a young girl who couldn’t be much older than her, one corner of her lips curled up slightly in a confident smirk, a Pokéball gripped firmly in her hand as she pointed it at her Pokémon and recalled it back into the ball. Her brown hair was styled into a short bob, and fluttered like a wave, almost like a Vivillon’s wing in the wind of the stadium as she sent out another Pokémon. </p><p>“And Challenger—” </p><p>Suddenly, the commentator stopped, the crowd cut off mid-cheer, and the speakers fizzled, the screen dissolving into darkness. Koharu looked around sharply and saw Bede stalking past her towards the double sliding glass doors leading to the basement. </p><p>He’d come back after all, just as Opal said he would.</p><p>“Turn off that dreadful din,” he shouted over his shoulder.</p><p>“You already did,” she muttered, and stared at the blackened screen forlornly. It was rather anticlimactic, and she yearned to switch on the TV again to catch the rest of the battle. Once upon a time, she wouldn’t have been interested in Pokémon battles and the like, but now? Now was a different story, and she marvelled once again at just how much she had come from that girl who’d left a charred Ash Ketchum lying on the steps of the Institute.  </p><p>“Ah, there you are, child,” said a familiar voice from behind, and Koharu waited for Opal to approach her side and settle down on the couch beside her. </p><p>“Where else would I be?” she said wryly. <em> It’s not as if I would run away, like Bede did. Not that he ran away, though. </em></p><p>“Hey, Ms. Opal,” she said, stiltedly. “Before Bede switched off the TV, did you see that match that was playing?”</p><p>“Sure did, child. I was barely past the entrance at that point, you know how slow I tend to walk.”</p><p>“That woman—Melony—she’s a Gym Leader?”</p><p>“Right you are. In fact, she’s the Gym Leader that challengers have to defeat right after me. She stakes her claim in snowy Circhester, to the west of Ballonlea.”</p><p>“So…” Koharu paused. “You know that girl just now? That challenger? Who is she?” She didn’t know why she was so interested, but… there had been something about the girl that had commanded her attention, something that had drawn Koharu to her. </p><p>“Yes, I know her all too well.” Opal smiled, a secret smile. “Who is she? Why, she’s the next Champion of the Galar region, that’s who she is.”</p><p>She felt her jaw drop. </p><p>“<em> What?” </em>she heard herself splutter. “But… but Leon’s the undefeatable Champion. The reigning World Monarch. And how can you possibly know?” </p><p>“I knew the very moment I laid my eyes on her,” admitted Opal. “Just as how I knew Leon was going to be Champion when I first saw him. That’s why I didn’t choose <em> her </em> as my successor, even though she was plenty pink. It’s a shame. She would’ve made an excellent Fairy Gym Leader—but there’s no doubt she’ll be an even greater Champion.”</p><p>“Wow,” breathed Koharu. “If she really does become Champion, then you’re a prophet, Ms. Opal.”</p><p>“Call me the wizard, child.” Opal winked at her. “That’s what they all call me.” After a while, she added, “And don’t be so surprised. I know you saw something in her, like how <em> I </em>saw something in her. You knew straight away that she was someone special.”</p><p>“I… I guess I <em> did </em> ,” admitted Koharu, a little awestruck. She glanced up at the TV screen again, then down at Eevee. She felt like <em> she </em> was someone special now, having the ability to pick out certain qualities in people at first glance.</p><p>“It’s the pink,” said Opal, and she turned to look at her questioningly. “People who have pink in them are able to sense pink in others.” And startlingly, Koharu realised that the <em> pink </em> Opal had been harping on since the first time they met <em> wasn’t </em> actually the literal colour pink—although that certainly had a part to play, too—but a <em> quality </em> that could be found in people. She still wasn’t sure what that quality was, but she was finally starting to understand more about Opal’s obsession with it. </p><p>Suddenly, Koharu remembered what Bede had said yesterday, the first time they’d met. <em> I was thrown out of the Gym Challenge. </em> Then she thought of how he’d switched off the TV and stormed off in a huff. She’d assumed that he was merely his usual miffed self—or even angrier than usual because of the events earlier today—but now she wondered if it had been a little deeper than that.</p><p>“Bede… he can’t stand seeing other Gym Challengers participating in the Challenge, can he?” she said quietly. Opal gave her an unusually sad smile.</p><p>“Bede has never liked seeing the successes of other people,” she said. “People that have everything that he has to live without.”</p><p>For a few minutes, they sat, wordless, sinking into the silence of the empty foyer. Then Opal said it was time for lunch, and they made their way through the doors to the basement again, where they joined Bede and Annette and Teresa and Theodora on the edge of the stage and ate their lunch out of plastic plates. </p><hr/><p>After lunch, Opal gathered Koharu and Bede behind the Ballonlea Stadium. Even though it was only slightly after noon, the village was bathed in darkness as usual, lit up only by the glare of the stadium and the glow of the bioluminescent mushrooms. Eevee seemed to shirk away from her surroundings, half-whimpering, half-growling. Koharu watched her carefully.</p><p>Bede smirked. He seemed to be physically incapable of being nice, she noted. “Your Eevee is pathetic. What a weakling.” His words cut deep—deeper than anything he’d said so far—and Koharu found herself bristling. </p><p>“What did you <em> say? </em>” she snapped, ready to turn on her wrath just like she had at the Friendship Festival in Slateport City when the two women had insulted Jinny and her Feebas. They had shrivelled in fear back then, but Bede didn’t even react.</p><p>To her dismay, she felt tears pricking her eyes, and blinked them back furiously. She would <em> not </em> cry, not in front of Opal and Bede.</p><p>“What did I say about using such language, boy?” warned Opal. “Keep that attitude of yours up, and you won’t be able to become a Gym Leader.”</p><p>“Like you want to keep me any longer anyway,” muttered Bede, and Koharu felt her eyebrows crease.</p><p>Opal studied Bede’s face for a long moment. Then she shook her head and said, “Oh, so this is what it’s been about.” When he didn’t say anything, she prodded, “Child, just treat this as another one of my tests. As a former Gym Challenger”—Bede visibly flinched—“you should be all too familiar with competition. <em> Rivalry. </em>” At that word, she heard him suck in a deep breath. “I told you this would only work if you put in the effort. If you just give up in the face of competition, what kind of Leader would you be?”</p><p>“But,” Bede said, seeming to be testing the waters, except Koharu didn’t know <em> what </em> he was testing. “But what if I put in the effort—and you still throw me away? What if you still choose someone else?” Suddenly, she heard the tremor in his voice, and she realised that it was <em> fear </em> that kept Bede as vicious as he was.</p><p>Then she realised <em> who </em> they were talking about, and her heart leapt to her throat, hammering in her ears.</p><p>“If you don’t put in the effort, you’ll never find out,” said Opal, and Bede shivered, as if a convulsion had wracked his entire body. Then she sighed, and her voice softened. “Don’t worry, boy,” she whispered. “I won’t throw you away. <em> I promise. </em>”</p><p>Bede nodded mechanically, then relaxed his shoulders and sent out a Pokémon. When the white light settled and dispersed, she was surprised to see another Eevee, bearing the same heart-shaped mark on its tail.</p><p>“Hello, Eevee,” said Bede softly, his whole demeanour shifting as he bent down to greet the Pokémon. The Eevee hesitated for a moment before mewing out a greeting.</p><p>“She’s still a bit shy,” observed Opal as she watched the two of them. “Spend more time together. Bring Chloe and her Eevee along with you. It’s not ideal as the bonding process works best when it’s just you and Eevee, but it’s even less ideal to let a ten year-old girl wander outside alone.” A pause. “Perhaps you can go out of Ballonlea, go to one of those nice cosy cafes in Motostoke.”</p><p>“No,” snapped Bede before Koharu could even blink. “We’re not going out of Ballonlea.”</p><p>“Wait,” said Koharu before Opal could interject. “What’s all this about spending time with Eevee alone and the bonding process? I don’t quite understand.”</p><p>Bede heaved a sigh. “Do you know <em> anything? </em>” he started to say, but Opal cut him off with a look.</p><p>“To achieve new heights of pink,” she said, earning an obligatory eye roll from Bede, “strengthening your bonds with your Pokémon is one of the best ways to do so. And what better way to do that than to strengthen your friendship with an Eevee, who evolves into Sylveon, its Fairy-type Eeveelution—and very pink too, might I add—when your friendship has grown to a high level?”</p><p>“Wait,” said Koharu, looking down at Eevee. “You don’t mean…” </p><p>“You’re going to evolve your Eevee,” Bede confirmed, “into a Sylveon.”</p><p>“Ee-bui?” Eevee asked, lilting voice hesitant. Koharu stroked its fur, her fingers running through the soft velvety hairs carefully.</p><p>Eevee, evolve? </p><p>They hadn’t thought so far ahead yet. And could Eevee even evolve? After all, the Researchers at the Eevee Evolution Laboratory had called her a special Eevee because it just couldn’t seem to evolve. They’d tried all the different evolution stones that Eevee normally reacted to—leaving only the friendship-based evolutions: Umbreon, Espeon and Sylveon. But the Researcher had expressed the possibility of Eevee being unwilling to evolve, or unsure about its path of evolution. Like Koharu.</p><p>But that was why they were together. They’d work this out—together.</p><p>“Hey, Eevee,” she murmured. “Do you want to become a Sylveon?”</p><p>Eevee tilted her head at her. When Koharu showed her a picture of Sylveon on her phone, her eyes lit up in recognition and admiration, and she said enthusiastically, “Bui-bui!”</p><p>Koharu brightened too. “You wanna?” She pulled Eevee into a hug, and Eevee squealed, nuzzling into her chest. “Let’s go on an adventure, then. Together.”</p><p>“Where to?” asked Opal.</p><p>“We’re staying,” said Bede stubbornly, “<em> in Ballonlea. </em>”</p><p>Opal glanced at Koharu for a second before turning to Bede. “Bede. A moment alone, if you please. Child, return into the Stadium for a moment. We’ll be right back.”</p><p>Koharu edged away slowly, then when she was out of sight, she slowed down a little, straining her ears. </p><p>“And no eavesdropping!” added Opal, making her jump as she hurried into the stadium. That old lady was psychic, she swore.</p><p>A good five minutes later, the doors slid open and Bede trudged through, with Opal trailing a distance behind. He barely looked at Koharu as he said, “Get in, loser. We’re going shopping.”</p><p>He jabbed a thumb at the Corviknight Taxi waiting outside, and Koharu scrambled to get her backpack from the Gym lockers before scampering after him.</p><p>She met Opal’s kind eyes on the way out. Yesterday, they would’ve been ‘creepy’ to her. “Have fun, child,” she said.</p><p>Koharu inclined her head. “Thank you. I will.”</p><hr/><p><b>🌸🌳</b> [下午12:01]<b><br/></b>sweet dreams</p><p><b>🐐🔥</b> [下午12:03]<br/>Thanks<br/>Hope you’re having fun</p><p><b>🧢⚡</b> [下午12:04]<br/>Goodnight to you too, Koharu! :D</p><p><b>🐐🔥</b> [下午12:04]<br/>Ash we’re 9 hours ahead of her<br/>it’s noon for her she’s not sleeping now</p><p><b>🧢⚡</b> [下午12:05]<br/>Then why’d she say sweet dreams? </p><hr/><p>Koharu was <em> not </em>having fun.</p><p>She had been promised a shopping trip in Motostoke’s famous retail district. Maybe a trip to a café or two. Not… <em> this. </em></p><p>“You can land here, we can take it from here,” Bede had told the taxi driver a few moments ago, all smiles and polite niceties—a stark contrast from his usual self. Koharu tried not to make a face. “Thank you. Have a nice day.”</p><p>Now they were standing in the middle of a dusty road, its edges fringed with green. The sky was wide and blue above their heads, puffy white clouds scattered across like egg white in a bowl of soup. Tiny hills barrelled out of the roadsides like sand dunes, and in the distance stood a cottage-like red brick building, steam chugging out of a spout-shaped chimney and merging with the clouds.</p><p>“This isn’t Motostoke,” said Koharu finally.</p><p>“Well, <em> thank </em> you, Captain Obvious,” snarked Bede. He had changed out of his Fairy Gym uniform, and was now wearing a magenta down overcoat. “And before you ask, this is Route 3. Right outside the city. And”—he hesitated suddenly, though Koharu didn’t know why—“it leads to the Galar Mine.”</p><p>“Galar Mine?” she repeated.</p><p>“It’s a mine,” replied Bede very helpfully, and set his Eevee onto the road. One look at him told Koharu he expected her to do the same, but still, she hesitated in putting Eevee’s paws against all the dirt and dust. </p><p>Eevee had never really stepped past the boundaries of the laboratory, and Koharu was the same.</p><p>“But what can we do here?” she asked, feeling the <em> lost </em> creep back into her voice. </p><p>“The thing I know to do best.” Bede set off to the stretch of tall grass ahead, Eevee following closely at his side. “Battling.”</p><p>Koharu stopped in her tracks, her heart in her throat. In the distance, she could already make out a few wild Pokémon in the grass, foreign and unfamiliar to her eyes, and fear paralysed her. </p><p>Lost. She was so lost.</p><p>Eevee nudged her ankle, staring up at her with a concerned expression.</p><p>“Ee-bui-bui?” she asked. Koharu tried to force a smile at Eevee, to convince her she was all right, but it couldn’t seem to come.</p><p>At Eevee’s cry, Bede turned around. “<em> Now </em> what’s the problem? Scaredy-Meowth? Meowth got your tongue?” </p><p>Koharu managed a smile-grimace at that. “Those are terrible puns.”</p><p>“Hopefully they're terrible enough to get you moving.” When Koharu didn’t respond, he added, “Speaking of Meowth, I bet you would simply gawk at Galarian Meowth.” </p><p>Koharu gaped at him. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair with a toss of his head. “<em> Yes </em>, Galarian Meowth exist. Ever heard of regional variants? You reek of amateurism, so I’m guessing not. Anyway. Galarian Meowth can be found on the other end of the Galar Mine, so if you actually move your feet for once, maybe we can get a glimpse at one.”</p><p>Koharu deliberated, then broke into a walking pace, following Bede to the wild grass that laid across the road like a sea of green.</p><p>“But try to guess what it’d look like first,” Bede called over his shoulder. “And no, no cheating by looking it up on your Pokédex.”</p><p>“I don’t cheat,” Koharu called back.</p><p>“Funny,” Bede said. “Could’ve sworn otherwise.”</p><p>“What’s your problem with me?” shot Koharu.</p><p>Bede squared his shoulders. “Nothing.”</p><p>They continued in silence. Then a flash of black and white whizzed across Koharu’s line of sight, and she gasped, taking a step back. </p><p>The Pokémon came to a stop in front of them, its claws scraping the ground and tiny fangs bared. It reminded Koharu of a zebra crossing with its black and white–striped body.</p><p>“Eevee, you’re up,” said Bede, and his Eevee sprung in front of the Pokemon. “If a fight is what it wants, then we’ll give it a fight.”</p><p>Koharu raised her phone to the Pokémon. “Zigzagoon, the Tiny Raccoon Pokémon,” her Rotom told her. “Thought to be the oldest form of Zigzagoon, it moves in zigzags and wreaks havoc upon its surroundings. Its restlessness has it constantly running around. If it sees another Pokémon, it will purposely run into them in order to start a fight.”</p><p>“Wait, what do you mean, the <em> oldest form of Zigzagoon? </em>” demanded Koharu.</p><p>“You really don’t know anything, do you?” muttered Bede as he called out a command, “Eevee, use Swift!”</p><p>As Bede’s Eevee launched a barrel of stars at the Zigzagoon, her Rotom phone answered, “This is the Galarian form of Zigzagoon. This is the Hoennian form of Zigzagoon.” Koharu stared at the pictures on the screen—one was just like the one she was seeing right now, and the other had cream and brown fur instead of black and white.</p><p>Belatedly, she remembered who she was—a research fellow. Her father would love to see a Galarian form up close, and so would Ash and Goh. She pressed ‘record’ on her phone, and the Rotom jumped out of her hand, floating in mid-air to record the battle hands-free.  </p><p>The Zigzagoon dodged Swift with a swift zig-zag pattern, but one more Swift aimed at just the right position stopped it in its tracks and hit true to the target. It cried out and stumbled a little.</p><p>“Baby-Doll Eyes,” commanded Bede, and Eevee winked at the Zigzagoon, sending a spiral of hearts that left it infatuated. Koharu watched it stumble around, disoriented, before Eevee lunged in for a final Tackle.</p><p>The Zigzagoon fainted, and Koharu knelt down, cradling it in her arms. Her Eevee padded to her side and pawed gently at Zigzagoon. She retrieved a Potion from her backpack and spritzed it into its face. It blinked, shuddering as it regained its energy, then jumped out of Koharu’s arms and shot back into the tall grass in a series of zigzag movements.</p><p>Bede hardly spared a glance back at her. “Let’s keep moving.”    </p><p>She ventured a question. “Why don’t you want to go to Motostoke?” </p><p>She thought he would never answer her when he finally replied, “Before I make my official debut as the new Fairy-type Gym Leader, I don’t want to show my face in public.”</p><p>Koharu frowned. “Why? Would people recognise your face?”</p><p>He turned on her. “Of course they would recognise me!” he spat, fists clenched at his sides. She leaned back a little, taken aback by his sudden ferocity. “I was the Gym Challenger endorsed by the—” Suddenly, he cut himself off, heaving a sigh, and he looked utterly deflated.</p><p>“Endorsed by…?” said Koharu, her voice trailing off.</p><p>He let out a growl. “Don’t ask. Look, it’s none of your business. Just pick a wild Pokémon to battle and do something for once.”</p><p>She pushed down her anger, raw and hot with hurt, and trailed a little behind him to put some distance between them. </p><p>Suddenly, a gust of wind picked up, sharp and strong, causing the tall grass to rustle with the leaves on the surrounding trees—and along with the breeze, a few Pokemon spiralled up into the air. </p><p>Koharu’s breath caught in her throat at the sight—the Pokémon reminded her of the seeds that dispersed by wind back in Vermillion City—a hybrid between dandelion and sycamore, they spun in the wind like nothing could hold them back, singing a joyous song that pealed in Koharu’s ears and whispered in her ears stories from faraway places. </p><p>Eevee gasped along with her, the soft sound a mix of awe and admiration, and she jumped up and down, as if trying to catch up with the Pokémon and drift away with them. The wind ferried away Koharu’s laugh, a sound of joy that would coalesce into the Pokémon’s song and be heard elsewhere.</p><p>Before they spiralled out of sight, she held up her Rotom Phone to document the phenomenon. After the last Pokémon faded out of sight, she looked up the Pokémon. </p><p>“Gossifleur, the Flowering Pokémon. It whirls around in the wind while singing a joyous song. It anchors itself in the ground with its single leg, then basks in the sun. After absorbing enough sunlight, its petals spread as it blooms brilliantly.”</p><p>“Wow,” breathed Koharu, and Eevee voiced her agreement. </p><p>Then a faint growling caught their attention, and they turned around to see a Growlithe growling at them, its hackles raised. She’d seen enough of Growlithe in Vermillion City, as Officer Jenny’s trusty partner in crime-fighting and patrolling.</p><p>She took in a deep breath. She had been in battles before, however short they might have been. She and Yamper had defeated Gengar and Fearow in one single strike. Yamper and Eevee had sent Team Rocket blasting with a double Spark. She could do this.</p><p>“All right, Eevee,” she said, and Eevee snapped into a battle stance. “Use Tackle!”</p><p>“Ee-vee!” Eevee tackled the Growlithe head-on, and the Growlithe stumbled backwards, but quickly recovered and used Ember—just like Goh’s Raboot used to use, except Growlithe spat out Ember from its mouth. </p><p>Eevee dodged nimbly without Koharu telling her, and Koharu said, “We’ll use Ember too!”</p><p>Her Eevee could use a move called Copycat—that’s what the Researchers had told her, after they witnessed her using Spark along with Yamper. It allowed Eevee to use the exact same move that had been used, and now Eevee launched an Ember at Growlithe. It collapsed and fainted, and Koharu tended to its wounds and healed it up before it scurried away.</p><p>“Your Eevee,” a voice said above her, and Koharu looked up to see Bede staring down at it with an unreadable expression on his face. She got up from the ground, dusting her knees and holding Eevee in her arms. “It used Copycat.”</p><p>Koharu nodded silently.</p><p>“That means it’s quite high-levelled. Much higher than mine,” he said, and Koharu furrowed her eyebrows. “It takes a lot of training for Eevee to even learn such a move.”</p><p>“Oh.” A pause. “Well, I got Eevee from an Eevee research laboratory, so maybe it already has some experience in battles?”</p><p>She declined to tell him—or Opal—that Eevee couldn’t seem to evolve no matter what Stone they used. It would just bring them more attention. More scrutiny. And Koharu had never liked attention and scrutiny as people had always seen her as the daughter of a Pokémon Professor, his natural successor.</p><p>Koharu looked at Bede. He was chosen by Opal as her successor, to become the next Fairy Gym Leader. She wondered if he had a choice about it, and if he really wanted to become a Gym Leader like Opal.</p><p>She wanted to ask him all that, but she knew it was too many questions and too personal, especially for someone as closed-up as Bede, and so they walked on in silence, battling wild Pokémon along the way until they reached the entrance of what must be Galar Mine—a rocky alcove framed by a bronze arch.</p><p>The lady at the entrance offered to heal their Eevee for them. Then they were staring into the gaping darkness of the mine. </p><p>Bede sucked in a deep, shaky breath and squared his shoulders. “Let’s go.”</p><p>They stepped into the mine, and the beckoning darkness swallowed their figures whole.</p><hr/><p>They emerged from the other side of the mine, hot and sweaty. At first the mine had been cool and dark, but then it had turned musty horribly fast, the smell of singed hair and burnt coal staining the air, as if someone had been hosting a barbecue in there. The rusty tracks seemed to shiver in the rippling heat wave, and even the beautiful glowing crystals embedded along the sides of the mine couldn’t draw away from the scorching heat. A cave was supposed to be a cool respite, Koharu thought to herself, but this cave was the opposite.</p><p>But then again, this was a mine, not exactly a cave. A mine where miners laboured away in poor working conditions and little rest, a mine where toxic chemicals were released into the air with every attempt to break and dissolve the gems from the walls. Even in the wake of Chairman Rose’s absence, the mine was spared no relief. </p><p>She didn’t miss the way Bede pulled the collar of his jacket up to cover his face, the way he lowered his cap and kept his face down when they walked past the miners. She didn’t miss the way he seemed to walk in stutters—walking and pausing, walking and pausing—stopping at different sections and corners of the mine, as if he was searching for something in every nook and cranny—but whatever he was trying to find didn’t seem to reveal itself, and he released a guttural sigh that faded into a soft growl. </p><p>“What’s wrong?” Koharu had asked him back in the cave, and even though he responded to her question, he didn’t seem to be completely aware of her presence.</p><p>“The Wishing Stars…” he muttered, his eyes flicking back and forth. “They’re all gone now.”</p><p><em> Wishing Stars? </em> Koharu struggled to remember what Wishing Stars were. She was sure Ash and Goh had talked about them when they recounted their Galar expedition to her. In fact… an image of Goh’s Dynamax Band flashed through her mind, and she gasped softly to herself. That was it—the Wishing Stars were a source of Dynamax energy, which could be fit into a Dynamax Band to allow a Trainer to Dynamax their Pokémon.</p><p>According to Professor Magnolia, the Wishing Stars were parts of Eternatus, which was said to have some sort of connection to the Dynamax phenomenon. </p><p>“There were Wishing Stars here?” she asked, and Bede bit his lip and nodded faintly, as if in a trance.</p><p>“I must have collected them all,” he muttered under his breath, as quiet as a pin dropping onto the floor, but Koharu heard him all the same.</p><p>She froze. She wasn't entirely sure why she froze. “You collected them?”</p><p>Bede cast his eyes to the ceiling. “Used to,” he said. “It doesn’t matter anymore.”</p><hr/><p><b>🌸🌳</b> [下午2:54] <b><br/></b>bede is hella sus</p><p><b>🐐🔥</b> [下午2:55]<b><br/></b>?? Bede??</p><p><b>🌸🌳</b> [下午2:56]<b><br/></b>oh you know<br/>opals grandson</p><p><b>🐐🔥</b> [下午2:57]<b><br/></b>Yeah I know who he is<br/>But what do you mean sus</p><p>🌸🌳 [下午2:58]<br/>we were in the galar mine<br/>and he kept talking about “the wishing stars”</p><p><b>🐐🔥</b> [下午2:59]<br/>Wishing Stars? Why was Bede talking about Wishing Stars?</p><p>🌸🌳 [下午3:01]<br/>he said the mine didn’t have any wishing stars left<br/>i think he used to look for them/collect them in the mine?<br/>idk it’s just hella sus<br/>wait why are you awake<br/>how are you not asleep<br/>…gou</p><hr/><p>“There’s the rascals themselves,” said Bede. “A Galarian Meowth.”</p><p>Koharu squinted at the creature through her pink binoculars she’d slung around her neck with a lanyard. The Pokemon among the wild grass did not look anything like a Meowth at first sight. It had shaggy dirt-coloured fur with black claws, ears, tail, paws and an obsidian coin on the front of its head. Its eyes were acid yellow and pupils as slits in the harsh afternoon sun.</p><p>“That’s”—she blinked—“a <em> Meowth? </em>”</p><p>Bede rolled his eyes. “Point your ridiculous Rotom phone at it if you don’t believe me.”</p><p><em> You aren’t exactly the most reliable or trustworthy guy around, </em> Koharu thought as she checked the Pokemon out on the Pokedex. </p><p>“Meowth, the Scratch Cat Pokemon,” the Pokedex told her, confirming her worst fears. “A Steel type. Living with a savage, seafaring people has toughened this Pokémon's body so much that parts of it have turned to iron.”</p><p>Koharu breathed, “<em> Wow, </em> ” and started recording the Meowth, creeping in a little closer and zooming in on the Pokemon. Up close, she could observe tiny flecks of silver that glinted blinding white in the sunlight, and she realised, <em> Maybe this Pokemon wasn’t what I initially made it out to be. </em> It was charming in a strange way, its golden lidded eyes flickering and shuttering like the wings of a Butterfree.</p><p>“Why are you doing this?”</p><p>She looked up to realise Bede had been watching her, his arms crossed against his chest. His figure blotted out the light, casting her face in shadow.</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“Why are you recording it?”</p><p>She frowned. “I’m a research fellow. Dad and Ash and Goh, they’ll love to see a Galarian Meowth up close in action.” She could already hear the boys’ excited voices, gushing over the ‘new’ species of Pokemon that they’d never seen before—and the Professor going wide-eyed over her discovery, an awed smile blossoming on his face like cherry blossoms as he praised Koharu for her valuable contribution.</p><p>Maybe for once, she would feel valued. She would be as valuable as Ash and Goh were. </p><p>Bede scoffed, a sharp sound that snapped Koharu out of her daydream. “Forget about that. They don’t need you.” </p><p>It was like a slap to her face, and it stung.</p><p>Koharu bristled. “This is valuable footage that my father would love to have,” she said, trying to keep her voice even.</p><p>He closed his eyes, hands in his pockets as he relaxed his shoulders. “Ah. So you want to impress your father, huh.”</p><p>“What’s it to you?” she snaps.</p><p>“Nothing,” said Bede. “Just like I said, they don’t need it. They don’t need <em> you. </em> Don’t you remember how eager your ‘friends’ were to leave you behind here? Don’t tell me you never felt like the odd one out with them. They don’t spare you any thought, so why are you so eager to help them? It’s not worth it, I’m telling you.”</p><p>“Well,” said Koharu, tightly, “sounds like you’re speaking from experience.”</p><p>A pause. Then, “Maybe I am,” Bede said quietly. </p><hr/><p>
  <em> 🌸🌳 has left the chat. </em>
</p><p><b>🐐🔥</b> [下午9:06]<b><br/></b>Sorry for not replying just now I fell asleep<br/>Still kinda groggy but anyway<br/>I’m gonna ask Sonia about the Wishing Stars in the mine<br/>Koharu, I think… Bede might have been working for Chairman Rose<br/>Gathering Wishing Stars for him, to wake up Eternatus<br/>But that’s just my suspicion<br/>Just keep an eye on him and tell us if you find out anything else, ok?</p><p><b>🐐🔥</b> [下午9:28]<br/>Koharu, you there?<br/>Oh, maybe you’re tired out from your first day, sorry haha<br/>Can’t be easy with Opal and Bede of all people<br/>How was it? Did you see any new Pokemon? Show us!!</p><p><b>🐐🔥</b> [下午11:57]<br/>??<br/>Koharu?</p><p><b>🐐🔥</b> [下午11:59]<br/>Oh</p><hr/><p>Back in the Flying Taxi, Koharu focused all her attention on Eevee.</p><p>“How was it today, Eevee?” she asked, running her fingers through her fur, a makeshift comb that wired out all the tangles from battling. There were tiny leaves and twigs stuck in her fur, and Koharu weeded all of them out meticulously, a strangely satisfying routine that left her humming a gentle tune not unlike the Gossifleurs’ song. Eevee leaned into her caress lovingly, eyes closed, not seeming to hear her question.</p><p>“Are you excited to be a Sylveon?” she said, and at that question, Eevee jerked alive—hitting her head against Koharu’s palm. Koharu giggled at that and gathered Eevee into her arms, who let out a questioning sound.</p><p>“Ee-vee-vee?”</p><p>“A Sylveon,” she repeated with a sing-song voice. “A Fairy-type Pokemon which you can evolve into! It’s <em> really </em>pink. And you’ll have a lot of pretty ribbons and the grace of a ballerina. I’m sure you’ll love it.”</p><p>“Ee-bui-bui,” muttered Eevee, and she slunk down to lie on her stomach, her ears flattened against her head, pouting. Koharu glanced down at her in surprise.</p><p>“What’s wrong?”</p><p>“Eevee.” </p><p>Koharu tilted her head. “Oh, you must be tired.” She smiled. “Sorry. My talking can get boring, doesn’t it?”</p><p>“Ee-vee.” Eevee closed her eyes, and soon she was fast asleep. Her body was warm against Koharu’s thighs, and she could feel each and every breath she took, like a slow, steady pulse, a second heartbeat that had grown integral to Koharu before she had even realised.</p><p>“That’s a lesson you’ll have to learn,” said Bede softly, and Koharu glanced at him. He wasn’t looking at her. Instead, he stared out of the window of the cabin, at the fields and mountains that stretched for miles below them. “Sometimes, in order to survive in this world, you have to change yourself to become something you’re not. Even if you don’t want to.”</p><p>In retrospect, Koharu should have realised that he hadn’t been talking to her—he had been talking to Eevee.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Act Three</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Tensions rise between Koharu and Bede as they venture into the depths of the Glimwood Tangle.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>sorry for not updating, school has been extremely busy and i haven't had the chance to get any real writing in. so this section is written before school started, still largely unedited, but it'll have to do</p><p>literally had a dream yesterday and i knew i had to update my fic. anyway, the glimwood tangle episode is next week (!!!!) and we are meeting opal next week too!! time for this fic to become canon-divergent</p><p>im not. proud of this as it's far from my best writing but alas, school. i still hope you enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Act Three</strong>
</p><p>So we drove on toward death through the cooling twilight.</p><p>—F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby</p><hr/><p>The days slid by like butter.</p><p>Koharu continued practising for the play, Opal an ever present figure in her rehearsals as she guided her through her lines and corrected her mistakes, but there was always an undercurrent of dissatisfaction running counter to her pleasant voice that Koharu felt every time she opened her mouth to speak her lines and acted her part out on the stage.</p><p>Once, she stayed back at the stage to watch Bede’s part of rehearsals, and was stunned by how flawlessly he delivered his lines, completely integrated into his part—and wondered how he’d changed his mind about playing Louis ever since the first time he’d laid eyes on the script and stormed out of the stadium declaring that he would never act in this play. His words rang in her mind. <em> Sometimes, in order to survive in this world, you have to change yourself to become something you’re not. Even if you don’t want to.  </em></p><p>Koharu wondered if these were words he lived by.</p><p>Koharu was definitely not Eden. Eden was not Koharu. Eden was brave, selfless, passionate, loving, surrounded by many friends, talented and brilliant with Pokémon. And however twisted it was, Eden was still the centre of her father’s attention, the apple of his eye. </p><p>Koharu wasn’t any of those things.</p><p>She didn’t know if she could ever act like she was someone she wasn’t, but it seemed like Opal had no intention of letting her drop out of the play. And sure enough, the next morning, Opal dragged her to ballet practice.</p><p>The waiting room for Gym Challengers had been converted into a ballet studio—the benches and lockers were pushed to one side, baring wall-length mirrors that lined the walls like carpets, affixed with elegant barres that cut the glass with bold lines of mahogany. Bede and the other Gym Trainers were stretching their limbs when Opal walked in with Koharu in tow, and Koharu saw her reflection in the mirror, lost and hovering.</p><p>“Leave us,” said Opal, and the Gym Trainers cleared the room, leaving the three of them in the room of mirrors. </p><p>Suddenly, Koharu felt it difficult to breathe, the mirrors multiplying distance and closing in on her all at the same time. She saw a million other Koharus in the mirrors—Koharus that were perfect daughters to their fathers, Koharus who had loved Pokémon from the get-go, Koharus who knew what they wanted to do in life, Koharus who were warm and enthusiastic and every bit as much the protagonist as Ash and Goh were—and she felt completely, utterly lost, more than ever.</p><p>“I should have signed you up for ballet lessons sooner,” said Opal, after Koharu had put on a used pair of ballet shoes with much difficulty. They were too small for her, squeezing her toes uncomfortably. It was a little painful wearing them, her toes scrunching up in the shoes like a compressed spring. “Your posture, your gestures… they need serious work.” She clapped her hands. “You, boy. Get into first position. Child, you follow whatever he does.”</p><p>Bede turned out his toes until his feet formed a straight line, his heels back-to-back. It looked awfully contrived, but Koharu did her best to follow. Her knees couldn’t close, her feet stood on the floor pronated, and her hips struggled to open, and she stumbled, nearly falling. </p><p>Opal moved in to correct her posture, teaching her to ease in the proper positions.</p><p>“Ah, ballet,” Opal sighed, a strangely wistful expression coming onto her face, as Koharu struggled to hold the second position. “Back in my day, I was the best ballet dancer. The prima ballerina. Everyone loved me. Feared me. Respected me.”</p><p>“Can’t do it now, can you, old gr—” Bede started to say, but gulped and scampered back a few steps when Opal’s smile sharpened, her eyes popping wide open in a way that reminded Koharu of the way she’d fixed her eyes on her the very first time they met. </p><p>She turned back to the miserable sight of her outturned feet and sighed. </p><p>This was going to take a while. But Koharu had always been a fast learner. </p><p>A few ballet practice sessions later, she wasn’t exactly on par with Bede, but she could keep up with him and follow the same exercises and routines as him. Her muscles and joints had ached since the first lesson, but Koharu could feel her body loosening and her muscles growing stronger by each day, as she moved and twisted her body in ways she didn’t know it was capable of. </p><p>She already felt ten times more graceful than she had been before she started ballet, and finally began to understand why Opal had wanted her to do it. The grace she learnt in ballet translated over to her movements in the play, and slowly, she began to feel more in tune with being Eden.</p><p>But Bede wasn’t too happy about ballet, she realised. </p><p>It took a couple sessions to sense the tired reluctance in his dancing, which had been masked by his relatively experienced movements the first time. But now that Koharu knew more about ballet and was able to dance along with him, she could feel it as clear as day as they did their warm-up. Though it always faded away into a hard, angry resolve after Koharu danced her routine and Opal applauded her for it—after which, he would launch into his routine with a vigour never seen before. </p><p>But the anger always showed through in his movements, and Opal scolded him for it. </p><p>“Too rushed. Too rash. Not elegant enough,” she said, and Bede’s shoulders drooped like a Lileep. “There is too much anger freezing up your movements. <em> Breathe </em>. Let loose. If you act this way in battle, how are you going to stand a chance against Gloria?”</p><p>Bede froze, and Opal took that as her cue to leave, as if the ballet studio were a stage and this was all a play to her.</p><p>“I want to see your routine by the end of this week, boy,” she called. </p><p>The door clicked shut. Silence. Koharu stole a glance at Bede through the mirror. She couldn’t decipher the expression on his face, as usual—and she’d recently learnt that was because his Hatterene was hypersensitive to strong emotions. She tried to imagine the internal conflict constantly raging inside of him, struggling to keep balance, but couldn’t. </p><p>“Who’s Gloria?” she asked him instead. </p><p>“She’s nobody,” he said curtly. Then he brushed past her and left without another word. </p><p>Koharu was left alone in the ballet studio. </p><p>She studied herself in the mirror. Stray strands of burgundy had fallen out of her bun, and her forehead was creased with sweat. Still wrapped in her pink leotard and pink ballet flats like a present, she stared back at the million different versions of herself in the mirror and wondered which one was the real her.</p><hr/><p>
  <em> On an island off the coast of Galar. LOUIS has washed up on the sandy beach a few hours ago and has just recently come to. Now he is sitting up, looking around. It’s peaceful. Water sloshes against the shore and the sun is sky high. Suddenly, he straightens, his mouth parting silently as a SPIRIT dances across the ocean along to an inaudible melody, faery-like and elegant. </em>
</p><p>SPIRIT [<em> sings </em> ] <em> Full fathom five thy father lies. </em> <em> <br/></em> <em> Of his bones are coral made. </em> <em> <br/></em> <em> Those are pearls that were his eyes. </em> <em> <br/></em> <em> Nothing of him that doth fade, </em> <em> <br/></em> <em> But doth suffer a sea-change </em> <em> <br/></em> <em> Into something rich and strange. </em></p><p>
  <em> LOUIS’s eyes widen as the spirit spirals away into the wind. </em>
</p><p>LOUIS. This song sings of my drowned father.<br/>This is no mortal business, nor no sound <br/>That the earth owes. I hear it now above me.</p><p>From the fringes of the clouds above, ETERNATUS and EDEN watch him, invisible.</p><p>ETERNATUS [to EDEN] The fringèd curtains of thine eye advance<br/>And say what thou seest yond.</p><p>EDEN. What is ’t? A spirit?<br/>Lord, how it looks about! Believe me, sir, <br/>It carries a brave form. But ’tis a spirit.</p><p>ETERNATUS. No, wench! It eats and sleeps and hath such senses<br/>As we have, such. This gallant which thou seest <br/>Was in the wrack. And, but he’s something stained <br/>With grief that’s beauty’s canker, thou mightst call him <br/>A goodly person. He hath lost his fellows <br/>And strays about to find ’em.</p><p>EDEN. [<em> breathlessly </em> ] I might call him <br/>A thing divine, for nothing natural <br/>I ever saw so noble.</p><hr/><p>“Faster,” barked Opal from below as Koharu landed on the roof with a thud, sending a few brick-red tiles skittering over the surface and off the edge when she pushed off from her three-point landing into a run. </p><p>Her heavy breaths mixed in with Eevee’s as they scaled the roof together to reach the chimney. </p><p>“And try to be less noisy about it,” added Opal.</p><p>The last thing Koharu expected herself to be doing was parkour, but here she was now, doing exactly that.</p><p>On the right end of houses, Bede muttered a curse under his breath as he lunged at the next roof, spooking the Hatenna that had been perched atop. As it rolled down the sloped wall and landed on the ground below with a bounce, he landed on all fours, muttering, “Stupid… old… gran…”</p><p>Koharu felt the whoosh of wind above her heads and looked up just in time to see Togekiss launch an Air Slash at them—or rather, at Bede, who didn’t seem to have noticed.</p><p>“Eevee, Copycat, quick!” she yelled, and Eevee fired an Air Slash that rivalled Togekiss’s back at Opal’s Pokemon. </p><p>The two Air Slashes collided and cancelled each other out, and the wind that came with the force of impact nearly knocked them from the roof. </p><p>Gritting her teeth, she grabbed Eevee with one hand, pulling her close to her chest, and the top of the roof with the other, and when the wind died down, Bede was staring at her in wide-eyed shock.</p><p>“Well, look at that, boy,” said Opal from below, causing Koharu to look down at her. “She saved your sorry butt.”</p><p>When Koharu looked back at Bede, the look on his face chilled her. </p><p>“I didn’t need your saving,” he said, an undercurrent of rage pulsing through his voice, fighting to stay under the surface and not break through, and for a second Koharu was frozen by the sheer hatred that radiated from him. It reminded her of the heat waves from the train tracks back in the Galar Mine, but instead of blazing hot, it was deathly cold.      </p><p>Hatterene materialised out of thin air, but Bede held out a hand. </p><p>“It’s all right,” he said evenly, between deep breaths. “I’m fine.”</p><p>“That’s it,” said Opal sternly. “You two. Come down from there.”</p><p>Bede slid down the roof and landed on the floor as nimble as a cat, while Koharu let herself down, slow and careful. She looked at anywhere but Bede. Not that he could stand the sight of her, anyway. </p><p>Opal handed Koharu a rolled-up piece of paper, and when she unfurled it, Opal’s spidery handwriting filled her eyes, the paper slightly yellowed with age. </p><p>“I’m sending you out into the Glimwood Tangle, to collect some herbs and mushrooms I’ll be needing for the next few weeks.” </p><p>The Gym Leader widened her eyes in warning when Bede opened his mouth to protest. </p><p>“Uh-uh. I don’t want to hear any complaining. While you’re there, observe the Fairy-type Pokemon who call the woods their home. Camp out in the Tangle for the night. I don’t want to see your faces until tomorrow morning. And for goodness’s sake, learn to work with each other.”</p><hr/><p>“This is all your fault.” Bede’s voice cut through the tense silence like a knife, cold and sharp and unpleasant in the matter-of-fact manner in which he said it.</p><p>“How is this my fault? I <em> saved </em>you,” countered Koharu through gritted teeth. Her grip on the torchlight tightened, and she hated that the light jittered along with the shaking of her hand. Leaves crunched beneath their shoes, too loud in the silent night. Even their ballet training couldn’t stop them from walking loudly in the too-quiet Glimwood Tangle.</p><p>“Calm down,” said Bede. “You’re asking for a beating from Hatterene.”</p><p>She blocked out Bede’s protests, looking around her surroundings—not that she could really see anything. It was so dark, the only path she could make out was the path of her torch. The trees loomed overhead, shadowy figures that threatened to swallow her up. </p><p>She’d never been here at night. Wait, scratch that—it didn’t matter what time she came here at, Glimwood Tangle would always be as dark as night. And she’d never been <em> in </em> the Tangle <em> at all. </em> It wasn’t as though Opal prohibited her from stepping foot into the wild woods, it was just… something about Glimwood Tangle scared her.</p><p>Was this how Ash had felt when he heard the beautiful singing voice of Flygon deep within the eye of the sandstorm? How he was so reluctant—maybe even <em> afraid </em> —to venture into the whipping winds of the sandstorm because of his own insecurities—and yet, just yet, something about it called him to it all the same? Because there was just something <em> so </em> charming about the Tangle, something so beautiful and mysterious that it terrified and enraptured Koharu all at the same time.</p><p>Goh’s voice shivered in her ears, sudden and unwelcome. <em> They’re magical and beautiful, but they have a penchant for trickery. They like to haunt places and lead travellers astray using Will-O-Wisp. Why do you think so many people get lost in Glimwood Tangle? </em></p><p>A chill ran down her spine, and she slowed her footsteps, coming to a stop. Luckily, there weren’t any will-o’-the-wisps to be seen anywhere.</p><p>Bede let out a dramatic sigh, though there was no bite to it. “<em> Now </em> what is it that you want?” he demanded. “We haven’t got all day. Let’s just find those mushrooms and get out of here.”</p><p>“That’s a tall order, seeing that we can’t see anything out here except for these glowing mushrooms, which are definitely <em> not </em> the type of mushrooms she wants.” Koharu scooted closer to one of those said mushrooms, borrowing its pink light to squint at Opal’s list. Why was her handwriting <em> so hard to read? </em></p><p>A shadow blocked her light, and she grumbled, ripping her eyes from the list and ready to <em> kindly </em> ask Bede to move out of the way—when her gazes locked with a pink creature just inches away from her face.</p><p>She held in her scream, biting her tongue and backing away a few steps, almost bumping into a disgruntled Bede. She was pretty sure she drew blood judging by the iron she was quickly tasting, but she reined herself in and drew her eyes up to study the Pokemon. </p><p>It was small and just the type of Pokemon Opal would love, she thought, with a mix of pink and purple with devil’s horn ears sticking out of its head like its upturned, pointy nose. Its nostril flared as it sniffed the air voraciously, almost as if there was something sweet in the air. </p><p>Koharu lifted her Rotom Phone to scan the creature.</p><p>“Impidimp,” the Pokedex announced. “The Wily Pokemon. A Dark and Fairy Type. Through its nose, it sucks in the emanations produced by people and Pokémon when they feel annoyed. It thrives off this negative energy.”</p><p>“Stay back,” ordered Bede suddenly.</p><p>His voice was as calm as the sea back in Vermillion City, and for a moment, Koharu felt lulled by the melodious quality of his voice. It seemed to have an effect on the Impidimp too, who blinked slowly and retreated back a little.</p><p>“It was probably attracted to our negative feelings,” explained Bede. “So… I must apologise for snapping at you earlier. I know it wasn’t your fault. I was just…” Koharu waited, and Bede sighed. “I was just jealous. Of you.”</p><p>It was Koharu’s turn to blink. “You… were jealous of me?”</p><p>“Was it not obvious enough for you?” Bede retorted, then sighed and took a deep breath when the Impidimp perked up. “My apologies. Let’s not talk here. You know what? Since we have to stay the night here anyway, let’s set up camp here first.”</p><p>Koharu’s stomach growled. She blushed. “I guess I’m pretty hungry too.”</p><hr/><p>They set up their respective tents—both pink but in different shades. Koharu’s was a pale pink—the same pink as her cherry blossom hairband she always used to tie her braid. A constant reminder of her family—<em> Sakuragi </em>—and her life back home. But right now, deep in the woods of the Glimwood Tangle, the last thing she could think of was the bright sea-salt-windy Vermillion City and the steel-and-glass Institute. </p><p>Bede’s was the same shade of magenta as the jacket he always wore. They were different, Koharu thought, unique in their own ways, but they were more similar than they wanted to be, too. After all, they had the same pink that Opal saw in the both of them. Pink was what tied them together—no, <em> Opal </em> was what tied them together. </p><p>And now, without Opal in the middle to reconcile their differences, they were left struggling to do it themselves.</p><p>“Have you ever done a Pokémon Camp?” Bede’s voice snapped her out of her reverie, and Koharu looked up from the cauldron to see him emerge out of his tent, his hair slightly more dishevelled than usual.</p><p>“Yes.” She gestured at the cooking equipment she was currently setting up, along with some firewood that the two of them had gathered from nearby fallen twigs. They didn’t dare take too much from the forest—it would be disrespectful to the Fairy Type Pokémon living in the area. “Have <em> you </em> ever done a Pokémon Camp?”</p><p>Bede scoffed. “What kind of question is that,” he said flatly. “Of <em> course </em> I’ve done a Pokémon Camp, don’t you know that it’s practically a rite of passage for a Trainer taking on the Gym Challenge to set up camp at least on—” </p><p>He stopped suddenly, the inertia flushing his face, illuminated by the light of the crackling fire. Bemused, Koharu studied him quietly. He almost looked… <em> ashamed </em> , as if he’d blurted out something embarrassing <em> . </em> And she had no idea why.    </p><p>“All right,” she sighed, feeding a stick into the fire. “You’ve done a Pokémon Camp. I’ve got to say, I’m surprised, though.”</p><p>He bristled. “What’s so surprising about it? Like I just said—”</p><p>“Yeah, yeah, it’s a ‘rite of passage’ or something. You just didn’t strike me as the type of guy who would like this sort of thing. The ‘Camping out with your Pokémon, cooking curry and eating it with them’ kind of thing.”</p><p>Bede sighed. “All right, you got me there,” he admitted. “I’ve never <em> done </em> a Pokémon Camp, at least not by myself. The only camping I did was at someone else’s camp. They invited me, and naturally, I said <em> no </em>, but they’re not the type of person to take no for an answer.” As he stared into the fire, Koharu watched his eyes lower, half-lidded and framed by lashes, and his cheeks flush a faint pink, a mirror image of how Gou blushed when he talked about Ash.</p><p>“Who?” she asked. When Bede didn’t reply, she ventured, “Gloria?”</p><p>Bede turned on her. “How did you—”</p><p>“Relax. I was just throwing names I knew out there. Besides,” she paused, watching Bede seethe silently, “I could tell that she means a lot to you.”</p><p>Bede’s mouth fell open and closed and opened again, like a gaping goldfish. </p><p>“She’s my <em> rival, </em> ” he finally said. “My only one, and the one I <em> just couldn’t beat </em> , for the life of me. Of course she means a lot to me, when I want to beat her in a battle so badly. Wipe that stupid smile off her face for once… Well, <em> wanted </em> to beat. I’m out of the Gym Challenge. It’s no use talking about her now.” He exhaled and took a swig of water from his bottle.</p><p>“Is she pretty?” asked Koharu, and Bede choked on his water.</p><p>“W-what kind of question is that?” he sputtered. “How would I know?”</p><p>As she started cutting up the Berries they’d brought over on the chopping board, she gave him a weird look. “By <em> looking </em> at her, of course. Don’t tell me you’ve never laid eyes on her before?”</p><p>He rolled his eyes. “You’re insufferable. Here, take a look for yourself since you’re so interested in her.” He retrieved a card from his wallet and flicked it towards her. </p><p>Koharu caught it with her left hand and set down the knife. “What’s this?” she asked, looking at the words printed on.</p><p>“It’s a League Card. Each Trainer in Galar has their very own League Card, with a picture of themselves, their signature and a short description about them at the back. Trainers like to give others their cards, or exchange League Cards with another Trainer. This is her League Card.”</p><p>Koharu turned the card over. “She gave you her League Card?” Then her eyes latched onto the girl in the picture, and she gasped. “That’s—!”</p><p>The girl who had been battling Melony on the TV a few months ago. The future Champion of the Galar League.</p><p>That girl was <em> Gloria? </em></p><p>She studied the card, heart thudding in her throat. The number 046 was imprinted on the bottom left hand corner of the card, and the same girl stared back at her, all kind brown eyes and radiant smile. A lock of brown hair curled to cover the side of her face like a playful smile, accompanied by the charming one she showed the camera. Dressed in the Gym Challenger uniform, she looked humble and quiet. When Koharu told that to Bede, he let out a snort.</p><p>“She’s the exact opposite of humble and quiet. She’s as loud and notorious as those Team Yell grunts.”</p><p>“But she’s so <em> pretty. </em>” Koharu studied her face for a while longer, then turned the card over to read the write-up.</p><p> </p><p></p><blockquote>
  <p>Hailing from the sleepy town of Postwick, a farming town since days of old where people and their Pokémon live in close harmony, she is one of the many Trainers participating in the Gym Challenge, raring to take the title of the undefeatable Champion. What’s of note is that she was endorsed by Champion Leon himself, alongside the Champion’s younger brother, Hop. Many claim that she only got her endorsement because she and Hop are childhood friends, but Gloria is determined to prove them wrong. </p>
</blockquote><p>“Endorsed by Leon?” Koharu handed the card back to Bede, who snatched it away rather roughly. “Wow.”</p><p>“There’s nothing remarkable about that,” he said dismissively, as he tore open two packets of instant noodles with his hands. “You read the card, she’s best buddies with the Champion’s brother. That’s the only reason she managed to get endorsed.”</p><p>Koharu raised an eyebrow at him before opening a sachet of curry powder and pouring the brown mixture of spices and herbs into the water. “But you just said that you’ve never been able to beat her in a single battle.”</p><p>“Well, that doesn’t count for anything,” he snapped, snatching the wooden spoon and beginning to stir the pot. “I <em> will </em> beat her. No matter what it takes.”</p><p>Koharu watched the curry powder darken in the water, melt, and slowly dissolve into the water. “But how? You just said you aren’t in the Gym Challenge anymore, so you can’t face her off in an official battle.”</p><p>The fire crackled in the silence. The brown mixture thickened with each round of stirring. “Actually… I <em> can </em>,” said Bede slowly. “There is one opportunity.”</p><p>“…Which is?” prodded Koharu. When he kept his eyes on the cauldron, she frowned. “Why do you look so unsure? You mean when you’ve become the Gym Leader?”</p><p>He stared down at the curry. “Maybe. I don’t know. During the Champion Cup Finals, I mean, where the Gym Leaders and the Champion hopeful battle in a tournament to see who gets to battle Leon. But you see, there are so many uncertainties. The biggest obstacle is that Ballonlea Gym isn’t even invited to the tournament, since in the qualifying heats, Ms. Opal finished eighth. Only the top seven Gym Leaders get to battle in the Champion Cup Finals. And there’s no guarantee that she would make it past the Semi-Finals to battle the Gym Leaders in the Finals.”</p><p>“She will,” said Koharu confidently, and Bede frowned.</p><p>“How can you be so sure?”</p><p>Opal's words rang in her mind. <em> She's the next champion of the Galar region. I knew the moment I laid my eyes on her. </em></p><p>“I just have a feeling,” she said with a smile. </p><p>He eyed her dubiously. </p><p>“… I have a feeling, too,” he admitted after a while, handing her the wooden spoon. “But… do I really want to show my face to the whole world, after getting kicked out of the Gym Challenge?”</p><p><em> What on Earth did he do to get kicked out of the Gym Challenge? </em>Koharu wondered to herself, but found that she couldn’t find the words nor the courage to ask. </p><p>“You’ll have to show your face eventually,” she pointed out instead as she took over stirring. “You’re going to be the next Ballonlea Gym Leader, after all.”</p><p>To her surprise, Bede stared forlornly at the sky above, a blanket dotted with tiny silver sequins. “Maybe not.”</p><p>“What do you mean?” she demanded.</p><p>Bede fixed his eyes on her. </p><p>“She might choose <em> you </em> instead.”</p><p>Koharu’s mouth dropped open. Blood roared in her ears. She stopped stirring.</p><p>“Me?” she echoed, not believing her ears. “Me, the next Ballonlea Gym Leader?”</p><p>“You don’t have to act so surprised.” Bede frowned at her, taking the spoon from her and resuming stirring the curry. “Don’t tell me you haven’t considered the idea, not even once?”</p><p>Koharu shook her head vigorously. “No,” she said. “No, that—that’s ridiculous. That’s a ridiculous idea. Wait.” She stared. “Is <em> this </em> why you were jealous of me? I—” </p><p>Bede cut her off. “What’s so ridiculous about it?”</p><p>“Well—” She stopped, wondering how to put everything she felt into words, feeling very ridiculous herself. </p><p>“For starters, I’m <em> ten, </em>” she finished lamely.</p><p>“So?” Bede raised an eyebrow. It was a flimsy excuse, and both of them knew it. “I’m fifteen. Trainers doing the Gym Challenge can be as young as ten. Leon became the Champion at ten. Don’t Trainers in Kanto set off on their Pokémon journeys at ten, too? And the younger someone is, the more training you can get in.”</p><p>Koharu fell silent, and Bede watched her.</p><p>“Come on,” he said. “What’s the real reason?”</p><p>A bubbling sound caught her ears, and Koharu looked down to see the curry beginning to boil. </p><p>She moved to slide the sliced Berries into the cauldron, and took over stirring from Bede. She watched the Berry slices dip and float on the surface of the curry, before sinking down and becoming completely coated with the brown sauce with her even stirring. </p><p>“Something about being a successor always scared me,” she said quietly. </p><p>“My father is a Pokémon Professor, so everyone expects me to follow in his footsteps. I’m supposed to like—no, <em> love </em> Pokémon, and make everything in my life about Pokémon. But I wasn’t interested in Pokémon, not least not at first. </p><p>“Then I bonded with Pokémon, I became interested in Pokémon, I even caught my first Pokémon. I joined Ash and Goh and became a research fellow. And then suddenly, everyone was warming up to me. Right after I caught Eevee, Goh told me, <em> Told you you would love Pokémon. </em> My classmates were all like, <em> Koharu! You finally decided to wake up! </em> And even my dad said, <em> I’m so proud of you, Koharu. </em> He’s never said that to me before.” Koharu’s voice trembled. Her eyes welled up with hot tears, and she blinked them away rapidly, tipping her head up so that they didn’t fall into the curry. In the sky above, the stars twinkled, like they were winking at her.</p><p>Her lip wobbled. “It seems like no matter what I try to do, I’ll always be seen as the Professor’s daughter. Like… that is my true calling and they can’t see anything else about me. Like… they’ve just all been waiting for me to ‘wake up’ and become a Pokémon Trainer. My dad says, <em> No matter what you choose to do in the end, I’ll support you, </em> but I know what he really wishes for is for me to join him in his research work. I think that’s the only way he really knows how to show his love. Through Pokémon. Like, I love Pokémon, don’t get me wrong, but I hate that now that I love Pokémon, everyone seems to be right behind me.”</p><p>She stared down at her hands. “There’s just so much pressure when you’re a successor.” She turned to look at Bede, who was sliding the instant noodles into the pot. “Don’t you feel the same?”</p><p>Bede frowned. “Not exactly,” he said slowly, and she felt her heart sink. Out of all people, she’d thought he would understand what she was feeling. </p><p>“There <em> is </em> pressure, but it’s different. I don’t know. It’s complicated. You wouldn’t know.”</p><p>“So <em> tell </em> me,” said Koharu earnestly. He avoided her gaze.</p><p>“Not now. It’s a long story.”</p><p>Koharu was about to say, <em> Well, we have time, </em> but she realised that they didn’t, not really. They still had a whole plate of curry to eat, and a whole list of ingredients to find for Opal before breakfast tomorrow. And the look on Bede’s face told her not to push further. </p><p>So she nodded, letting him scoop the curry noodles into their bowls, and they ate in silence as usual.</p><p>Maybe it was the silence that made her more attuned to the sounds of the Glimwood Tangle. There was a silvery melody, akin to the tinkling of metallic windchimes, pulsing softly in the air, a haunting harmony that danced in her ears. She could hear the rustle of leaves in the trees overhead, almost like the sound of ocean waves, moving gently back and forth against the shore, reminding her of the ocean in Vermillion City. For the first time since she set foot in Ballonlea, she felt at peace.</p><p>Maybe this, she thought, was the heartbeat of the Glimwood Tangle.</p><p>She drifted along to the sleepy melody and almost drifted off to sleep. But then Bede announced that it was time they headed off to find their ingredients. They wiped their crockery and cleaned up the cauldron. </p><p>Koharu asked, “How are we going to find our way back here?”</p><p>“Don’t worry,” he said. “I know the Tangle like the back of my hand.”</p><p>“Do you now,” deadpanned Koharu. He shot her a glare.</p><p>“I <em> do! </em>” he insisted, his cheeks reddening. “I trek here every week, okay? Ms. Opal’s orders. As the Gym Leader in Ballonlea, I’d need to be able to help guide lost travellers or Challengers or even townspeople if they get lost or stuck in the Tangle.” </p><p>Koharu perked up. “If Opal makes you trek here every week and not me, it means she wants <em> you </em> to be the Gym Leader, silly, not me!”</p><p>Bede heaved a sigh, though she could see the obvious relief in his eyes. “I suppose so.” A silence stretched out as they set off down the leaves-strewn path, then, “Still. Who knows what goes through that old gran’s mind sometimes? She might wake up one morning and decide that I’m worthless. Then she’d throw me out of Ballonlea, and I’d have nothing.”</p><p>“Bede,” she said, “Ms. Opal said that she would <em> never </em> throw you away, and she means it. She obviously loves you! How can she ever throw you away?”</p><p>Bede’s eyes widened, violet irises that flared, bright against the darkness of the eternal night. “Ms. Opal… she <em> loves </em> me?” He said the word as if he couldn’t quite believe it.</p><p>“Yeah, of course!” she said, not sure whether to laugh at the absurdity of the question. He tugged at a lock of his white hair. </p><p>“You really think so?” His voice was soft—too soft. </p><p>“I <em> know </em> so.”</p><p>Bede kept his eyes on his feet. </p><p>“I don’t know,” he mumbled.</p><p>Koharu softened. “What is it that makes you so adamant about the fact that you cannot be loved?” </p><p>He flinched, as if she’d just struck him with a whip. “That’s an awful thing to say,” he said thickly, and Koharu was about to argue when he continued. “But… I have said—and done—a lot of awful things in the past.”</p><p>“Bede, look,” she said firmly, placing her hands on his shoulders and forcing him to look her in the eyes. He flinched at her touch, but didn’t pull away. “It’s <em> not </em> an awful thing to say. It’s normal to be loved. You deserve to be loved, no matter what you’ve said in the past. No matter what <em> anyone </em> says. </p><p>“And Ms. Opal <em> does </em> love you. She always gives you too many ridiculously tricky quizzes and dresses you in too much pink clothing and gets you drunk on too much tea and hits you and threatens to throw you to the faeries, but… she loves you. She loves you <em> so much </em>, Bede.” </p><p>She paused. Hesitated. Then sighed and continued, “You’ve been a rather annoying and obnoxious brat, but honestly I love you, too. You’re a good teacher, training partner and friend—”</p><p>Bede burst into tears.</p><p>He cried almost <em> prettily </em>, Koharu thought as she sprung away from him; diamond tears streaming from amethyst eyes down pink cheeks like twin rivulets, sparkling and rivalling the glimmering forest. It’s almost unfair how pretty and pink he is even when he’s crying, and she wondered to herself just how he could’ve ever thought that Opal would make him anything but her successor—and that Koharu, of all people, could be pink enough to rival him.</p><p>She wasn’t even a good battler.</p><p>She averted her eyes from the sight—right as Hatterene popped out of her Pokéball, shaking violently, and raised its claw-like appendage to strike her in the head. </p><p>She yelped and dodged, feeling the wind whizz over her head, barely missing her. </p><p>“Hey! Stop!” she yelled, hearing the fear bleed into her voice, but Hatterene didn’t want to listen to her. The fear probably agitated her even further, she thought, biting her lip.</p><p>She felt her Pokéball shake in her pocket, then Eevee materialised in a shower of white light, growling at Hatterene, hackles raised. </p><p>“Eevee!” she hissed in alarm. “Get back into the ball!” Eevee didn’t listen—or didn’t <em> hear </em>, her whole body vibrating as she growled at the witch Pokémon through gritted teeth, ready to pounce at any moment. Here, she reminded Koharu of Yamper, jumping right into danger’s way trying to protect her from Gengar when it’d broken into the Institute wreaking havoc. </p><p>“It’s all right,” Bede said in a shaky voice, placing a hand on Hatterene’s back. “She didn’t do anything.”</p><p>Hatterene let out an unconvinced noise, a cacophony of windchimes striking violently against one another. She raised her appendage, ready to strike again, and Koharu tensed. Then, before she knew it, Eevee had lunged in for a Tackle, but Hatterene Teleported swiftly away, before reappearing like a glitch looming in front of them, eyes creased menacingly. </p><p>“Why don’t you go somewhere far away for now?” Bede’s voice wasn’t quite level, but for someone who had been sobbing just a few moments before, it was a fairly impressive act. Even though it wasn’t the first time seeing this emotional discrepancy, Koharu felt deeply unsettled by the act, even as she watched him go up on his tiptoes and reach up a hand to pat Hatterene’s witch-hat, tapping out a calming rhythm that seemed to reassure both him and Hatterene. “I’ll calm down, and you can come back. All right?”</p><p>Slowly, Hatterene let go of Bede. On closer inspection, her face was creased in <em> pain </em>, not exactly to threaten, Koharu realised with a pang. Strong emotions clearly pained her, but when her Trainer was holding in so much latent rage and hurt and pain, it was even harder for her not to lash out at him. So she’d chosen the next closest target—Koharu. </p><p>After a moment of silent deliberation, Hatterene teleported away in a flash of light, and they were left alone again, along with a trembling Eevee who Koharu bent down and scooped up into her arms.</p><p>“Hey,” she said softly. “It’s okay now.” When Eevee refused to return to her Pokéball, she bit her bottom lip, then sighed and relented. She set her onto the ground. “Don’t run off, okay? We don’t want to get separated, not in this place.”</p><p>Then she turned to Bede, who was wiping his eyes with a pastel pink handkerchief he’d seemingly procured out of nowhere, arranging his features into the façade of indifference she was used to seeing by now. He caught her eye but didn’t say anything.</p><p>“Your Hatterene really cares about you,” she said carefully. “I don’t think I’d be able to train one, no matter how much Opal wants me to, or how much you think I’m capable of being the Fairy Gym Leader.” Her words sunk into the thick quicksand of silence, quick and heavy, and she cleared her throat. “Um… are you all right? Do you wanna talk about it?”</p><p>Bede hunched his shoulders. “No.” A pause. “Let’s just,” he said stiltedly, each word a struggle to come out. “Find the ingredients and go.”</p><p>Another, pause, a long one. If silence were Morse code, the two of them could’ve spelt out a whole essay in the cipher. Koharu breathed out through her mouth, caught between pressing him to talk about his feelings and leaving him alone. Not that any prodding would’ve got him to open up—he was like a Clamperl, clamped firmly shut, a storm brewing and swirling dangerously out of control within. It was only a matter of time before he exploded.</p><p>“Fine,” she said. “Oh, look, there are some Big Mushrooms here.” She stooped down to pluck them and drop them in her basket. Then they continued cherry-picking down the path, dancing around the elephant in the room.</p>
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